The Catalyst Issue 16 | April 2013 | Page 17

her pacifier and picked it up, something she had not been able to do before the surgery. Her recovery took about one week, but it took six months to assess the surgery’s full results and determine whether Paige needed more surgery. In the meantime, Dr. Verma increased the patching to six hours a day. In August, Dr. Verma performed a second operation to strengthen Paige’s eyes, this time moving the outer ocular muscles. One week later, it was clear that Paige had taken a big step forward. Dr. Verma says, “Paige’s eyes looked perfect.” The child’s vocabulary had increased to 15 words, and she was finally able to see the world around her, including her parents mouthing words when they spoke. “Before her second surgery, Paige only knew two words, ‘Momma’ and ‘Dada.’ She was only 14 months old, but I was beginning to worry about her lack of vocabulary,” says Mrs. Kummerfeld. Also, Paige had never shown any interest in books. As a former firstgrade teacher, Mrs. Kummerfeld knows the importance of reading at least 30 minutes a day to children. “I would get so frustrated that Paige wouldn’t even let me get through the title before she was climbing out of my lap,” she says. “Well, the day we came home from her second surgery, Paige went straight to the book basket. She brought me book after book after book to read to her. She kissed every page as if she were seeing friends for the first time, almost like, ‘Oh, so you’re the Cat in the Hat that my mom was talking about!’” Dr. Verma predicts that Paige won’t need further surgeries. “With the early intervention,” she says, “the likelihood of Paige having good vision is high. We won’t really know until she’s three and can read letters for us, but I expect a good outcome.” “We have a team of pediatric experts that are adeptly suited to caring for children,” says Dr. Kummerfeld. “I’m very happy we could get Paige’s eyes taken care of as soon as we did, because it was important to treat her condition early on. It’s great that Scott & White is able to deliver this level of service within our own community.” Mrs. Kummerfeld says, “Paige is incredibly bright and is one of the best problem solvers I have ever seen. I almost think that her lack of sight has pushed her to figure things out. If I see her struggling with a toy, or opening a box, I will say, ‘Paige, may I please help you?’ Paige will put her hand up and say, ‘Stay. Mines.’ God bless her, she always accomplishes her goal!” The Kummerfelds believe that