Conner Bolton - Fall 2009

My name is Connor Ray Bolton. I was born September 12, 1993, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I was born at 32 weeks. Right away, I was diagnosed with Treacher Collins Syndrome. I spent the next two and half months in the NICU with many complications. My airway was the main issue that had to be dealt with. The doctors put a trach in when I was just a month old. They put a G-tube in, since I had a severe cleft palate and wasn’t able to suck a bottle.

I finally came home just before Thanksgiving. My parents were ecstatic to bring me home. I was sick a lot when I was little, and I didn’t want to learn how to eat.

My parents moved us to Plano, Texas, when I was three years old, where I had many surgeries in my young life. My parents found my doctor in Dallas, Texas, Dr. Salyer. Since his retirement, I now see Dr. David Genecov. I had jaw distraction surgeries, so I could get the trach out. I finally got the trach out just before I started kindergarten.

At that time, I was blessed with a little sister named Molly. Later in first grade, I got the G-tube out. I still struggled with eating for sometime after that. I am currently 16 years old, and I have had as many surgeries as my age now.

I enjoy eating all the same food my family eats. Through the years, I got ears through reconstructive surgery and a boneanchored hearing aid (BAHA), and I am now in the middle of braces.

By the time you read this, I will have started high school. I am studying for my driving permit and enjoy all my classes especially, history and science. My goal is to go to college and study history and eventually get my Ph.D. in history. I’d like to one day work in a museum.

When I am not doing homework, I enjoy playing with my Wii and reading all the WWI and WWII books that I can get my hands on. I enjoy drawing all kinds of animals in my spare time. I also enjoy spending time with my sister.

When I think back on my life, I feel blessed to have my family with me every step of the way. I know my future will be bright because I learned to work hard and never stopped believing in myself. But most of all, I just keep remembering that God made me who I am.

If you would like to share your story with CCA, please send an email to Annie Reeves at areeves@ccakids.com. If your story is chosen, with your permission, we will edit and publish it in the CCA newsletter, on the Web site or use it for public awareness programs. Not all stories will be selected.

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