“We did it once, we can do it again.” Even though their doctors advised them not to continue their fifth pregnancy because they would only be adding more stress to their family, Daniel and Maylinda were determined to try. They felt that through the difficulties, something special would happen to their family.
Both sons, Daniel (11) and Julius (8), were born with Hydrocephalus; fluid was building up in the skull, causing the brain to swell and damage brain tissue. The Reno family has spent the past 11 years traveling to Sacramento and Palo Alto for their sons to receive treatment, surgery, and therapy. Many of those appointments ended with Daniel and Malynda staying in the waiting room, paying for expensive hotels, or driving the several hours back to Reno only to turn around and come back the next morning. It wasn’t
until this most recent surgery for Julius that the family was able to get a room at the Sacramento Ronald McDonald House.
“Our advice to families is to never lose hope. It takes a lot of work and patience to take care of our boys. We work opposite shifts during the week so we can pay our bills and hospital expenses. The days we have off as a family are spent at the hospital for appointments.”
Their most recent visit to Shriners Hospital for Children was for their son, Julius, to have surgery on his legs to extend his leg muscles and do some grafting on his bones. He was able to get “new legs” and start intense physical therapy to help him learn to walk with both feet straight. The family was so relieved when they got a call from their social worker telling them they would have a place to stay at the Sacramento Ronald McDonald House. They said, “We were planning on dropping Julius off at the hospital for surgery and waiting for the surgery to complete before we drove back to Reno while he was recovering in the NICU.” Luckily they didn’t have to resort to that. “We wouldn’t be where we are today if it weren’t for organizations like this helping provide a little cushion and a lot of hope.”
Even through 11 years, countless surgeries and appointments, the death of their 9-month-old daughter, and two sons being diagnosed with Hydrocephalus, the Ojeda- Maynigo family continues to find hope in all things. “Tough days happen, but at the end of the day, we are a happy family. I love that our sons have the magic touch to help people smile and be happy.”
– Daniel & Malynda Ojeda-Maynigo Family