Chapter 1: Connor's Beginning
At 23 weeks into her pregnancy, Amee Passione, Connor's mom, learned that Connor would be born with Spina Bifida. Amee was told that her son would probably never walk or move his legs and would develop a number of medical issues over time. Despite the life-changing news, Amee and her family never stopped believing Connor would be something special.
Connor was born at West Penn Hospital on March 11, 2009 and taken into surgery shortly after delivery to correct his diagnosis of myelomeningocele, a birth defect in which the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth. He underwent a second surgery a week later, to insert a shunt to relieve him of hydrocephalus, a buildup of fluid inside his skull. During the next month of his life, Connor moved between Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC's NICU and the Pediatric Specialty Hospital at The Children's Home of Pittsburgh & Lemieux Family Center.
-Amee Passione, Connor's Mom
