"But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

~II Corinthians 12: 9-10

Kaitlyn Marie was born on November 13, 2005. Her birth was highly celebrated due to the difficulty that her parents endured to bring her into the world. Katie was a twin, but arrived to the world alone because her twin died in utero during the pregnancy. When she was born, she was celebrated and loved. But only 11 months after her birth, Katie Marie went to heaven, to join her twin. This is Katie's story...

One Saturday night in October, Katie was unusually fussy and at first, her parents thought that she was teething. She slept a lot on the following Sunday and her temperature was 100.8. Since she had 2 rough nights in a row and was just fussy and her parents thought that her fussiness could have been due to an earache. These behaviors were not like her at all.

On Monday morning, Katie was really hot with a temperature of 103.8. Immediately, her mother called the pediatrician. The pediatrician determined that she was slightly dehydrated and they sent her to a local hospital for IV fluids and further examination. The Emergency Room pediatrician started her on fluids, did a chest x-ray, blood work, and did non-invasive checks for meningitis. At the time, they did not think she had meningitis and did not want to put her through a spinal tap unless it was necessary. The x-ray showed a small spot on her right lung so they also started IV antibiotics.

On Tuesday morning, Katie's blood work revealed an infection and the doctors decided that they needed to do a spinal tap to rule out meningitis. Unfortunately, they could not rule it out. It came back with a diagnosis of bacterial meningitis. Due to the seriousness of the case, Katie was transported by ambulance to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. As soon she arrived, she had a CAT scan that confirmed the meningitis. After beginning treatment with strong antibiotics, she had a seizure and her blood pressure dropped. She was then transferred to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit where doctors were concerned that the infection seemed to be affecting her heart. Thus far, little Katie was holding her own. Over night, they were hoping to let her come out of sedation in hopes of removing her ventilator and having her move her arms and legs.

On Wednesday morning, her parents were told that Katie needed another CAT scan because one of her pupils was unresponsive. This is indicative of higher pressure in the brain and the CAT scan confirmed it. Dr. Ben Carson assessed her and determined the need to place a catheter/shunt to drain the fluid and then put a monitor in for monitoring the pressure inside the brain. He was hoping that this would relieve the pressure and her vitals would improve. Following Dr. Carson's assessment of Katie, her parents were at her bedside talking to her and stroking her head. And, Katie would move her shoulders in response. They also were stroking her arm and holding her hand. And, she was gripping their fingers so hard that they could still feel the pressure for a few seconds after letting go. Thinking back, they think she was telling them good-bye.

Shortly thereafter, Katie's blood pressure dropped and her blood cells were low in platelets. When they checked her neurologically, the other pupil was unresponsive. They sent her down for an emergency cat scan. Sure enough, the pressure had increased in her brain. They couldn't do the shunt procedure until her blood pressure and platelets re-stabilized. Dr. Carson presented two options. The first option was to not do the procedure and see how she did. Or they could go ahead with the shunt procedure but know that there was a risk of her bleeding out during the operation. Faced with those choices and the increasing pressure, how could they not do anything? They gave Dr. Carson permission for the shunt. The 30 minute procedure ended up taking almost 2 hours. When they finished, they said that Katie came through it, but neurological tests indicated that there was evidence that she had several small strokes. They indicated that they did not know if Katie would recover and that if she did recover, then she would not be the same little girl that she was before all of this. They didn't think she would ever walk, talk, or crawl again.

At 2:30 Thursday morning, Katie's blood pressure dropped and her heart rate decreased by 30 points. Katie's parents quickly notified family members who were not already at Johns Hopkins. At 4:30 am, Katie was surrounded by grandparents, aunts, and uncles who sang the sweetest version of "Amazing Grace" that you have ever heard. They all talked to her and tenderly gave her kisses. She was slowly declining by then so they gently placed Katie in her mother's arms to rock her one final time. They sang "Amazing Grace" again and then followed it with "Sanctuary," "Jesus Loves Me," and then "Jesus Loves the Little Children." These are the same songs they had sung to John and Katie at bedtime. When they had finished singing these songs, the doctor pronounced that she had passed.

It has been three years since the death of their daughter and in those three years, Darren and Karen have spent many hours questioning God, questioning themselves, and wondering why God would allow their daughter to die. It isn't an easy question to answer. But, it is a question that many parents who lose children have asked. And yet, while they may have questioned why God allowed Katie to die, they have not questioned the existence of God or the presence of God in their lives. In the most difficult time of their life, God surrounded them with love of their family, friends, and Church. And, they found that they could endure the most heartbreaking experience that any parent can endure. And, they did so with the Lord's love and support. When they had no strength of their own, the Lord carried them. And, He continues to carry them each year that goes by. While they are heartbroken by their loss, they have found comfort in knowing that Katie has left their arms and has gone to the arms of Jesus.