This fall, an expectant mother from a small town in Missouri found out that her son had spina bifida, a condition where the spinal column does not close all the way during the baby’s development. This can cause a range of serious, even life-threatening problems such as nerve damage, paralysis and fluid buildup around the brain.

In the past, babies with this condition were operated on soon after birth but in the last few years, intrauterine (inside the womb) surgery was developed to treat the baby before birth to get the best possible outcome for the baby. In an October 23, 2017 New York Times article about one such surgery, the doctors claimed that the optimal time for this surgery is 24 to 26 weeks.

Although many women tragically abort their babies with spina bifida, this brave expectant mother wanted for this surgery for her son. The surgery was scheduled at a large medical center in St. Louis.

Hearing about this, a call was put out to the St. Louis pro-life community to help this mom. One person donated an apartment near the medical center for her before the surgery because she was on bed rest and afterwards for recovery.  Many people made meals and helped in other ways.

Mother and baby are now doing well and we are all praying for an uneventful final weeks of pregnancy and a safe delivery.

Especially at Thanksgiving, we give thanks for the blessings we enjoy. Perhaps we should also give thanks that we have such wonderful, selfless people like those in this story!