Meet Emma!

Emma was born in China with a cleft lip and palate and at 15 months old, was adopted by her parents, Ed and Tricia. Shortly after their arrival home, Emma’s palate was repaired at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU (CHoR). After surgery, she began speech therapy sessions and regular visits to CHoR’s Center for Craniofacial Care.

In Emma’s short nine years she’s endured six surgeries and three hospital stays. Most recently she had an alveolar bone graft to repair her upper gum line which involved borrowing bone from her hip. Emma and her parents are happy to know that as she continues to grow and develop, CHoR will be with them to anticipate and meet her future needs.

Although she is very open about her medical needs, Emma is much more concerned with the more important things in life: playtime with friends, museum dates with her dad and library and shopping outings with her mom. When asked to describe Emma in one word, Tricia says, “Joyful!”