Online Community Rallies Behind Parents Of A Baby Who Was Hit By A Softball As They Share An Update

Jun 15, 2018 by apost team

Lee and Kassy Hovenga looked forward to making new memories with their new daughter, Mckenna. For this reason, they were very excited to take her to her first-ever softball game. Being only seven weeks old, this was a big outing for little McKenna. In fact, other than short trips for a few groceries, this was her first real public outing. 

With the diaper bag packed and everything prepped, Kassy envisioned cradling her daughter in her arms during the game, enjoying the afternoon out together. 

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But what Kassy envisioned never became reality. Instead, Kassy and Lee found themselves in an unbelievably devestating situation with their newborn. While Kassy and Lee were prepping McKenna for nursing, a stray ball unfortunately came their way. The crowd called out a warning, but the new parents didn’t see it coming, as they were in the midst of arranging McKenna's nursing blanket. In the chaos of those short seconds, Kassy felt the ball on her arm. More importantly, she heard her daughter's shrieks. 

And upon looking down at her hysterical newborn, both Lee and Kassy were astounded by the large bump on her head. Quickly, both rushed their darling girl to the nearest hospital. Residents of a small town (Shell Rock, Iowa), the two had to furiously make it to Waverly Health Center in a town nearby. However, doctors there were unable to treat McKenna and sent her to the Mayo Clinic. 

Distraught and in disbelief, Lee and Kassy were informed that their newborn had a skull fracture and bleeding in the brain. McKenna was seizing and would need constant care for the time being. All Lee and Kassy could do now at this point was pray, and pray they did. 

And, slowly, the couple finally began to hear some good news. McKenna was starting to gradually regain consciousness, and she began spending much time sleeping. These were good signs. However, the little girl was still seizing several times a day. 
 

Again, all Lee and Kassy knew to do was to pray. Knowing others' prayers could be beneficial as well, they set up a Facebook page called Healing for McKenna. Here they received many supportive words from friends, family, and even people they never met. 

"I do not like my phone blowing up but opening Facebook and getting a new notification of hope and prayer every half second is very heart warming," Lee reflected. 

Kassy, too, found it heartwarming, stating that, "I never truly believed in the power of prayer, but after posting about McKenna, within 20 minutes we started getting nothing but good news! We are blessed by everyone and everything that everyone is doing for us." 

After a month's stay in the hospital, Lee and Kassy were finally able to take their bundle of joy back home. Doctors informed the parents that there could still be some brain damage which could potentially affect their daughter's vision and motor skills. However, doctors mostly emphasized how resilient young children are, and that McKenna has every possibility of a full recovery. 

Relieved to be going home with their three-month-old baby, Lee and Kassy thanked every one of their online supporters from the bottom of their hearts. 

These two parents have committed to keeping everyone updated on McKenna's progress and took the time to warn others that accidents like this could strike anyone at any time. 

Emotional, Kassy reminded her online prayer warriors to "give your babies an extra kiss and hug tonight. You NEVER know if your whole life will flip upside down in literally a blink of an eye." 

Show this inspiring story of faith and prayer to your family and loved ones in support of little McKenna and her beautiful, loving parents.