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  1. As told by her mother Brandi... So many of you have been wondering how Faith is doing. Thank you all for your thoughts prayers and support through this journey. Faith had a rough start since being brought into this world and been through more than most adults. She was born full term via c section due to being breech. Her head was under my ribs and she wouldn’t turn. When she came out she did pretty well Tuesday then on Wednesday she started having episodes of apnea. Her brain wasn’t sending signals to her lungs to breathe. She was put on a cpap then by Thursday she was placed on a ventilator. Friday we were told that she has trisomy 18, Edwards Syndrome which is a rare chromosomal defect. There is no cure, no fix, it just is. These babies have short life spans. They are lucky if they live past the first 6-9days of life. By Saturday the ventilator was doing all the breathing for her and Deryk and I had to make a heart breaking decision. That’s not a life living on a vent for the rest of her days. But our little girl wasn’t done fighting yet, she was not done living! The vent was discontinued, she opened her eyes and breathed! She was placed on monitors to track her oxygen, heart rate and respiration’s. We waited another week to see how she would do. No more episodes of apnea! We went through a week of education and learning how to care for once she came home. Our hope was restored! She would come home! Our Faith is now 2 weeks old and defying the odds! Our Faith is a true testimony that there is power in prayer! ❤️ I also have to say that the staff at Penn Highlands DuBois NICU and maternity are amazing people! We couldn’t have gotten this far without them! They went above and beyond their call of duty and made whatever accommodations for Faith, us and our family. They have been a God send for us and we are forever grateful to them. 💝
    21 points
  2. Today Faith Marie is 3 months old. She is 8# & wearing 0-3 mo clothing.
    16 points
  3. Yesterday was Faith Marie’s 8th month birthday. She is 13# & 24 1/2” long. She loves most baby foods, loves to “talk”, & knows who is talking to her. She has been learning so much stuff this past month. Her appt in Pitts went well, so well in fact, the Drs said that Faith would live past her 1st birthday. With all the prayers this little girl has in our area, state, and country, God hears them, and He has healed most of the problems she was born with! Thank you Jesus!!
    12 points
  4. Peanut gained another 2oz this week. She is up to 4# 7oz now. She also pulled her feeding tube out this morning, but she has been taking a bottle that is equal to what she was given through the feeding tube. As long as she continues to take a bottle, she won’t need the feeding tube. 🙏🏻
    12 points
  5. The first arrest is the most important one. In an instant, everyone involved knows that they are probably next. This is when they start ratting on each other. I'm thinking, ... this might be bigger than we thought.
    11 points
  6. S_A_Hoov

    Boy says he's a cat

    Read this on facebook and had a good laugh. So, there is a lot of talk about kids identifying as cats or dogs “furries”, and this is hilarious. . Imagine if you can, that one of my boys told me they thought they were a cat? Sitting at the supper table son says: “Dad, I think I’m a cat! Dad: “No son, you’re a boy! “ My son: “No dad some of my friends at school identify as cats, they call themselves furries, and so do I !! It’s my right and you can’t do anything about it!” Dad: “OK!! “ My son: “Hey, where’s my supper? “ Dad: “Your supper is in the catfood bowl in the corner. Now get off the table you mangy cat!” My son: “What???” Dad: hits him with a broom, “get off the table furball!!” My son in the corner looking bewildered! Me to my wife : “Is that cat neutered”?? My wife: “I will make an appointment!! “ My son: “What??? “ Dad: “Your mother and I have decided we don’t want a house cat, so get out to the barn and hunt mice!” My son: “What???” Dad: brandishes broom, “NOW, to the barn you stupid cat!!” My son: “Dad, I think I’m a boy!” Dad: “I thought so, now sit down and eat your supper!!” Spay and neuter these animals. Stop them from reproducing. Today’s society has enough fruit loops already. End of story!
    11 points
  7. Thank you, to everyone who has followed along with Faith Marie’s journey to reach a year old!! The majority of us learned what Trisomy 18 is. We also learned that “Trisomy 18 is a Diagnosis, Not a Prognosis.” We have no idea what the future holds, we will go day by day. Everything is in God’s Hands, His plans & His time. 🙏🏻💜🙏🏻
    11 points
  8. I was playing with Faith while her mommy did an errand. We were playing with a wiener dog, they go “bark bark”, because that’s what real wiener dogs sound like. The dog would bark, then kiss her cheek, this is the reaction I got, 😂 😍
    11 points
  9. Faith is 11 1/2 # as of last Saturday night. I got a phone call an hour ago asking if I could watch her till 4. 😍 ❤️ Here are a few pics I just took.
    11 points
  10. Faith Marie’s 1st Easter!!
    11 points
  11. Today Faith Marie is 1 month old. ❤️ 🙏🏻 ❤️ We are told that her odds of making it to a yr old go up if she made it to a month old. I say she has the same odds as the rest of us. When God calls us home, we go.
    11 points
  12. PRAISE THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY!!!! CANCER AND THE LESIONS ARE GONE!!!! we still have to continue with chemo to kill it dead but all I can say FAITH DEFIES THE ODDS AND PROVES THERE IS POWER IN PRAYERS! THANKS BE TO GOD!!!!!!!
    10 points
  13. We just loved getting these pictures today!! 😂 ❤️ 🦌 💚
    10 points
  14. Yes she has, isn’t it wonderful!! She is starting to eat baby food now, she loves applesauce!! The rice flakes helped put weight on her also. Brandi said every time a hole closed in her heart, she would go through a growth spurt. The last time it happened was when she grew 2” in 1 month, but they didn’t know the hole closed!! Faith Marie has one more hole, it usually requires surgery to close it. She is hungry a lot, wants held more, sleepy, etc. These are all the same things she did a couple months back when she had that big growth spurt. We are all praying that the last hole closed up!! We won’t know till the end of this month. 🙏🏻❤️🙏🏻
    10 points
  15. Excellent article, written in simple enough terms that we ALL should be Furious..
    9 points
  16. Just think, if we took a little a little off of the 120 Billion that was sent to Ukraine. We would be able to hire thousands and thousands more security guards for our schools. We need to protect ALL of our children!! This is simple to fix. All you need is common sense with LAW & ORDER! We can not TRUST any part of the Biden Administration and 90% of our politicians. They don't care about WE the PEOPLE, all they care about is MONEY in their pocket!!
    9 points
  17. Wonder if any of his supporters may be suffering from the same? We really need some soul searching and to get this country back on track. We are slowly destroying our selves from within!
    9 points
  18. Happy 1st birthday Faith Marie!!
    9 points
  19. Happy Thanksgiving everyone from the Winklers & the Spicher’s!!
    9 points
  20. Here is the article that was about Faith and the Daisy Award winner Nikole Kessler. This was when Faith Marie was 3 months old. Yes, I’m late with it. ********************************************************************** We are truly privileged to congratulate our most recent DAISY Foundation winner: Nikole Kessler, RN, of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at PH DuBois. Nikole helped to care for infant Faith Marie Spicher, who was born with Trisomy 18. Many babies born with this chromosomal condition do not live beyond their first few days or weeks of life. Faith, however, grew strong enough in the NICU that she was able to be discharged and go home with her parents. This week, Faith turned 3 months old. We are honored to share the beautiful words of Faith’s mother, Brandi, who describes the experience and how Nikole went above and beyond in caring for Faith during her time in the NICU: “Faith Marie Spicher was born on Jan. 15, 2019. She was diagnosed with Trisomy 18, incompatible with life. We knew that Faith would be cared for at the NICU after she was born due to her diagnosis. What we didn’t know was how much she would be loved and cared for by the staff. Faith was placed on a ventilator by Jan. 17, 2019, due to episodes of apnea, and had more wires, tubes and monitors than could be imagined. It was hard to deal with; it was difficult to see our baby going through so much. But what wasn’t difficult to see was the compassion and love she received from the nurses and also the huge impact that this small life had on them as well as us. We will never forget the NICU nurses and all the memories we had with them. They will always be a part of our family and we are forever grateful for them. Nikole Kessler cared for Faith through the best times and hardest times. She laughed with us, celebrated with us and even cried with us. She was able to look past all the wires and tubes and only saw Faith. You could see a connection growing between the two. She not only took care of Faith as a nurse, she cared for Faith as if she were her own. She wasn’t afraid of Faith’s condition, as a matter of fact she took it on as a challenge; Faith would beat the odds and be her “feisty spice.” She made sure that Faith received the best care and all the snuggles she could give. Nikole walked with us hand in hand through Faith’s entire journey in the NICU. On Jan. 19, 2019, Deryk and I had to make a heartbreaking decision to discontinue the ventilator. We couldn’t have our baby live on a vent for the rest of her days. Nikole stayed with us, even off duty, through that difficult time. She took a turn holding her and cried right with us as we thought Faith’s time here on Earth was over. Nikole even handmade a wooden plaque for this day, “Too Beautiful for Earth, Faith.” As the minutes turned to hours and Faith amazed us all with desire to live, breathing on her own, Nikole shared in our tears as they turned from heartache to tears of joy and hope. The following day, Nikole checked on Faith as soon as she came into the NICU to make sure she made it through the night. She kept us updated through her entire shift and shared in our joy and relief as she continued to report that Faith’s vitals were stable and she was not having any episodes of apnea. Nikole made sure we didn’t miss any special moments. She carried the camera in her pocket and was quick to capture every significant second – the first time we fed our baby through her og tube, her first outfit, first bath. She filled two photo books and ran the printer out of paper just so we had every memory of the beginning and, what we thought, would be the end of Faith’s life. Nikole continued to be there for Faith even on her days off of work. She made the trip into the hospital and spent hours with Faith just to hold her. Finally, the day came when Deryk and I were able to take Faith home and Nikole was there to do her discharge. There wasn’t a dry eye in the NICU, especially Nikole’s. She even escorted Faith out of the hospital just so she could soak up every last moment with her. To this day, Nikole continues to be a part of Faith’s life, keeping up with her and all of her firsts and celebrating with us every time Faith defies the odds. Nikole is more than the NICU nurse that cared for our baby, she is part of our family and we know Nikole will forever be a part of her life as long as Faith is with us on this earth.” Please join us in thanking Nikole. We are so proud of her heartfelt dedication to caring for our littlest patients! Follow the link to read the very touching words Brandi wrote about the other members of Faith’s NICU nursing team as she said she wanted to recognize each person that was there fighting for Faith, caring for her and, most of all, loving her! http://bit.ly/Baby-Faiths-Story
    9 points
  21. Why are you taking my picture grandma?
    9 points
  22. Papa with Faith Marie, Faith smiling, Faith Marie imitating Muhammad Ali, Brandi reunited with Faith after work.
    9 points
  23. mr.d

    GoDois'r Wins Car

    Still really hard to believe I won the 1966 Mustang.
    9 points
  24. Protect the identity of the whistleblower. They had reasons for wanting to stay anonymous. If they want people to know who they are, they can step forward. Why expose the one person that had the integrity to say something about dealings that looked wrong to them? There were many people that had to know, yet said nothing. The allegations, if found to be true, involve big names and multiple levels in the community. Their influence could make things rough. Again, they all deserve their day in court. Here's to hoping ALL of them pay if they are found guilty, big names included...or maybe, especially the big names.
    8 points
  25. SgtRick417

    DuBois VFW closed

    The current VFW's and AM Legion, perhaps even the AmVets is discouraging. When I was a boy, my uncle - a pilot in WWII - would take me along with him to the Am Leg and the VFW. I would get an orange pop and wander around the club. My memory is that there was more to those clubs than a bar with less expensive booze. There were locations set aside where members and guests could sit in comfortable chairs and read the news papers, or just sit quietly. It was a place JUST FOR VETERANS. In my adult life these clubs have permitted so-called "social members" to crowd in for the bar. No more exclusiveness for veterans who earned the right to have their own club. It has been years since I was in any of them. By the way, I am retired military. Marines in the early 60's with a year at Danang, later 3 years as a weapons instructor for a Navy Seabee Bn, some years in various Nat'l Guard units, I retired when I came home from Desert Storm/
    8 points
  26. If Herm had a contract as manager of Sandy Township, he would of been fired last April and no legal fees paid. Only a corrupt organization would pay his legal fees.
    8 points
  27. As a footnote to your comment...Biden, like Fetterman, was "installed". Not for the betterment of the whole...but for the betterment for those who installed them.
    8 points
  28. Had Faith entered in the Most Beautiful Baby in Elk Co at the fair last week. Brandi & I took Faith to her first Fair, plus you had to be there when they announced the winners. The pic with the wings is the one that was on her can you put money in it to cast your vote. ❤️
    8 points
  29. Faith was 6 mos on July 15th, that’s a 9-18% survival rate for trisomy 18 babies. Faith will defy the odds and keep proving that there is power in prayer!
    8 points
  30. This was her Valentine pics her mom sent us yesterday. ❤️❤️❤️
    8 points
  31. I was laughing at her forehead this morning, her father has the same exact lines. 😂 Faith Marie was bright eyed & looking around at her surroundings, so her mommy decided to get pics of her forehead.
    8 points
  32. fedup

    Who in the hell cares??????

    Once again, the crooked Liberal DOJ is trying to hang Trump for anything they can. You all do realize that Trump is not the real target here. You are, the voter. The Liberals are trying to take away your possible vote. Just more proof of how the voting system is corrupt. Now remember, this group of people, are the same hypocrites who are constantly telling you that everyone except liberals is trying to take away your democracy. So what has Trump done that is so bad that you can't vote for him??? Tell the world he was cheated during the crooked voting process. Surprise you fools, there are millions of Americans who believes the exact same thing. Are you gonna jail all of them for what they believe??? He has boxes of government records in his home just like Biden and most likely all the other presidents before him. We all know, pretty much, all the things that Trump has done in his life. Is he pure? HELL NO. Is he worse than all the other voted for's? HELL NO. In fact, I am willing to bet he has lost tons of his own money since he stepped into the dirty swamp of politics. Just think of the current living crooked pollys. How much are the Clintons worth??? The Obama's??? The Bush's???? The Bidens???? The Pelosi's ????? on and on and on. A hypocrite never believes that he/she has to live by they rules they make up. They just expect everyone else to live by their rules. So when you ask a hypocrite why your life sucks more than it ever has, you get a hypocritical answer that makes no damn sense at all. Don't forget to vote for more of the same come silly season. What you have been voting for is working out for you, ain't it?????? Buy a windmill, use your solar panels for a tanning bed with the money you don't have. Enjoy your future in a liberal created democracy.
    7 points
  33. I'm shocked. (very heavy sarcasm intended) More like the last 20 years or so.
    7 points
  34. Trzyna was not a horrible city manager. He did a good job while he was there and moved on to something better. He is speaking up because he knows more about the job than most of us would since he once did it.
    7 points
  35. I hear "the establishment" is mounting a smear campaign against at least one of the write-in candidates for "sins" committed over 30 years ago. The woman owned her mistake--which turns out to not be a mistake given the outcome. And has been honest and forthright about other mistakes or missteps she has made. The only perfect human died on the cross. Shame on those that would attempt to disparage her. I would rather work with someone that can own their mistakes than attempt to cover them up.
    7 points
  36. Doctor Coffee

    Blvd pavillion

    we need to change that sign immediately
    7 points
  37. Nice write up in the courier ...the solicitor Toni Cherry , one of Herm's "friends" stating how much of an asset he's been for the city!!! GTFOOH
    7 points
  38. We are committed to ensuring integrity is maintained within DuBois city government, which, we believe epitomizes Herm’s tenure as City Manager. Oh Please....600k is a lot of missing integrity Council will remain vigilant in our oversight of City funds and its employees. Toni, how hard were you laughing when you wrote that?
    7 points
  39. The question is? Will Herm take the total hit or sing on others? Where were the City Treasurer and Auditors? The Mayor? Board of Community Days? Who did he have business quid pro quo deals with?(Which contractors?) Who did he owe gambling debts to? How deep are the investigators going to go? Stay Tuned. And that's not including the political favors. PS. Tax returns are also FEDERAL.
    7 points
  40. Warning, This is going to be a long post. Also Trigger Alert We took Faith to Pittsburgh on Thursday and Friday for some regular follow up visits, a BAHA hearing aid fitting as well as Pre-Op surgery clearance. The surgery is for her eyes due to strabismus with esotropia (which means her eyes are crossed but only one eye turns in at a time, not both at once) So I’ll start from the top. She was fitted for her hearing aid and as you seen in the previous post, it went well. What we did learn is that Faith should only need this type of hearing aid and not a permanent one that’s implanted behind her ear. As she grows her hearing should get better as her ear canals widen. So good news. She also got a CT scan of her ears to make sure there is nothing physically affecting her hearing such as blockages or fluid or wax....we are waiting for the results on this. We saw her cardiologist who was very pleased that her heart has remained stable. She still has the small vsd (hole in her heart) but this is not causing any issues or affecting her in any way other than when she gets sick she has a harder time getting over the colds. So Faith graduated to one year visits!! He was very pleased that Faith has exceeded his expectations! So yay! Good news! We saw her eye doctor who measured her eyes once more to make sure the surgery was necessary and would be effective. Yes to both of those. Even though the inner muscle pulls her eyes inwards alternately, her vision itself is fine. So she can have her hey surgery! Yay! Good news! Okay so there’s all the good news. While we were down there Faith needed to have a screening abdominal ultrasound to check her kidneys. Children with Trisomy 18 are at higher risk of developing Wilms Tumor which is a type of kidney cancer. We received these results on Friday The ultrasound showed multiple lesions on her left kidney (nephroblastomas) as well as a 2.2cm mass (the size of a ping pong ball). It also showed she has gallstones too. So an ultrasound is like looking at a black and white tv through a fish bowl. This does not give the drs a full view of how much her left kidney is affected. So we are going down for an MRI to look at her left kidney and get a better idea of what’s going on. Then they are going to try and do a biopsy while she is having her eye surgery. Then once we get a better idea of what’s going on she may be receiving some “soft” chemotherapy which is the lightest stuff they can give her, easy on her heart as well as her immune system. Or She will receive “soft “ chemo and possibly have an operation to remove a part of or her whole kidney. This is depending on the MRI results as well as the biopsy. We need to move fast. We are going to wage war. These lesions and this mass are ticking time bombs. It is not a matter of “if” it will turn to cancer, it is a matter of when and how bad, but remember, at this moment, it is not cancer, yet. The chemo will act as a weed killer in a sense, by killing these nephroblastomas (the weeds) before they grow into a bigger problem and spread. This will be a week by week and at times a day by day process. This is not going to be something that is going away quickly, it’s going to take time and patience, but most of all...it’s going to take prayer. So what I’m asking of all of you is to do what you’ve been doing all along.... pray. If Faith has taught us anything it’s that when we come together as one, United, there is Power in Prayer and she is proof of this! I don’t want you to feel sad. I don’t want you to feel bad. I don’t want you to feel sorry. I want you to feel strong I want you to feel the strength of the Holy Spirit coursing through your veins as you pray. I want you to feel the power and the hope of Jesus Christ in your heart. She is not just my Faith, she is OUR FAITH! We are going to keep moving forward, we are not giving up! And Faith is going to keep doing what she’s always done, Defy the Odds and Prove that there really is Power in Prayer cause that’s how she rolls! So pray folks and pray hard, put your hearts into it cause this little girl is living off of YOUR PRAYERS and YOUR LOVE! Thank you for all your support and your faith in Faith❤️
    7 points
  41. She had an oxygen level of 97% through the night! Still congested but lungs are sounding much clearer, it’s like it went back to her nose again lol but I think a few more days and we will be almost back to normal 😁
    7 points
  42. For anyone that doesn't know, a tipper is a stand alone piece of equipment that the tractor trailers back onto to dump their loads in the landfill. Most dump the trailer after the truck uncouples, but some will lift the entire truck and trailer When that deck is in the down position, it is normally angled from back to front, so the trucks have to back slightly uphill. The big blue wall the truck is backed into is called the backstop, and the way I read that story the employee was pinched between the truck and the backstop. It's doubtful the truck was in neutral with the brakes off and just rolled into him. This is just a very sad, scary story, and another sad example that I shared with all of my operators at lunch today. We see 130-160 trucks per day, and several times per day we will interact with these trucks with either a man on the ground, or a piece of heavy machinery. Trucks can get stuck and have to be pushed or pulled, spotters will be on the ground, trash can get hung in the chute in the tipper... The cardinal rule is always make contact with the driver before doing anything around, or to, their truck. Landfills are busy places, trucks and equipment never stop moving. Many drivers get paid by the load, not by the hour, so everyone is in a hurry. We deal with a lot of weight and a lot of horsepower, so very few accidents are small. Almost every accident results in significant damage to equipment, and my fear is always what would happen if it ever involved a man on the ground. This is what would happen. It's so sad. It's a preventable accident, and if a driver was in fact driving the truck when it ran into that man, he will have to live with that for the rest of his life. I wouldn't wish that on anyone, and my biggest fear is having to call one of my employees' wives one day and tell her daddy isn't coming home
    7 points
  43. You’re welcome! We were told today that Faith Marie is 10 1/2# & 24” long! She grew 2” since last month!!
    7 points
  44. This is the time of year where we give our PowerPoint presentations to the big wheels, show them what changes we have made that are going to make us better the following year. I have an entire slide devoted to one topic. We were finally allowed to make drastic cuts in one specific area, and after only 8 months there is a noticeable difference in not only stability, but also a reduction in costs associated with the after effects of that material once it is placed in the landfill. These changes were not made just at my site, but were mandatory nationwide, with severe penalties for anyone violating the new policies. It will never be said out loud, but there is not a doubt in my mind that the ripples that caused these changes originated from a little mountain town in PA. Thank you for making noise
    7 points
  45. Very true. And y'all got a new pet monkey
    7 points
  46. NikonSniper

    Save your dogs eyes!!

    My German Shepherd like every dog loves to ride in the truck with his head out the window and loves to run on the trails when we ride bikes. I worry he gets nailed in the eyes with something. Found these Doggles on the internet and they work great!! Look cool too!!
    7 points
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