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Hernando Today

A Christmas Gift To Cherish

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By KYLE MARTIN

Published: December 28, 2007

BROOKSVILLE - BROOKSVILLE - Their living room is a picture of normality.
Three photos are neatly arranged on the wall above the couch, all showing baby Ella Dale in the arms of her proud parents.
A Christmas tree short enough to fit in their apartment is ringed by a collection of newly-opened toys. They're all of the hardy plastic variety and designed with enough lights and doodads to grab the short attention span of a child approaching her first birthday.
But it's the little things that first indicate this is not your average family.
For starters, the ceramic Christmas village and some decorations on the end table are at the perfect height for an ambitious infant to break and gnaw on.
Little Ella is sitting in a booster seat for support at an age when she should be crawling or even taking her first steps.
The closest explanation for all this is the hospital visitor's tag on mom's purse by the door.
Erin Deane will tell you that this time last year she fully expected her daughter would have a typical first Christmas. But a 15-in-a-million chance changed all that.
"I've probably experienced every emotion possible in the past year," she said.
Deane and her fiancé, Jason Dale, are high school sweethearts from the suburbs of Buffalo, N.Y. A lack of teaching jobs for her up north led the couple to Brooksville in 2004; that and an escape from the "Snow Capitol of the World."
Deane, 26, started work as a fifth-grade instructor at Spring Hill Elementary and Dale, 27, found a job landscaping.
Life was rolling along when Deane discovered she was pregnant. Though a surprise, they were overjoyed about the addition to their family.
They wanted a traditional name and settled on Ella Elizabeth Dale.
She was born healthy and welcomed into their home in Brooksville's Candlelight Apartments.
But at 4-months-old, something changed. Ella would no longer stand up and bounce on a lap. She screamed every time she was laid on her stomach. Her left eye was droopy. Movement in her legs grew limited.
As a first-time parent, Deane was confused whether this was normal behavior. Child development books only left her feeling frustrated, and a doctor's prognosis didn't seem to help.
In June, Deane took her baby to the emergency room. Her young maternal instincts were sounding the alarm.
"I just knew something was wrong," she said.
Her fears were confirmed when the neurologists walked in and told her that a tumor was growing on Ella's spine.
Surgery that removed a thumb-length portion of her spine was followed by intensive chemotherapy. What little hair Ella had fell out, along with her eyebrows and eyelashes.
When most mothers were examining the ingredients of their child's baby food, Deane was learning the contents of the chemical cocktail pumped into her baby.
The oncology wing of All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg was the place where Deane learned the tricks of the trade from other moms, not the neighborhood playground.
Insurance has helped soften the blow from the mounting medical bills. The couple's family and Spring Hill Elementary have held fundraisers to chip in.
But the daily trips south to Tampa and St. Pete take their toll financially, too. That's where Hernando County Fire Rescue stepped in.
Both medic J.P. Janssens and Ella's father work out at a gym near Candlelight Apartments. When Dale shared his family's situation, Janssens appealed to the firefighter's union for some help.
On Friday, firefighters presented Dale and Deane a check for $500 earned during the annual haunted station during Halloween.
"I feel better about where the money is going," said firefighter Gabe Croft, charities coordinator. "It's more personal" to do it this way.
Doctors foresee a long recovery for Ella, but she is getting better and regaining the use of her legs. Her smile and good attitude have kept her parents strong.
When the every-day worries like bills weigh down, she reminds "me that there's a bigger part of life going on," Dale said.
For more on how you can help Ella's family, visit: myspace.com/elladale

Reporter Kyle Martin can be reached at 352-544-5271 or kmartin@hernandotoday.com

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