As you already know I my daughter Emma was born with a Cleft Lip and Palate! I have a lot of new readers that don’t really know all the background. We knew this prior to her being born, but what we didn’t know is all the problems that we would run into with her feeding after being born. When she was in the hospital I searched the internet like crazy to see what how other parents dealt with feeding problems of their cleftie. In my search I found the group, A Cleft Mommy’s Bond of Friendship on Facebook. This group helped us tremendously! They gave us suggestions for feeding Emma that eventually helped her to get out the hospital after 50 LONG days! Besides all the feeding information we got from the group, we got support from a group of people that had once been in our same shoes.
Lisa (the Mom in the picture below) held my hand from afar! She checked in on me and made sure Darrick and I were okay. She gave us as much support as she could from Arizona…mind you she had only knew of us from my post on the groups page about Emma and her feeding problems! I can still go to the group now with questions about Emma’s Cleft and exchange information with other parents!
God sure knows how to give you what you need at the right Time!!
About a month ago I had to do interviews for my class and I picked Lisa to do an interview on. Now I knew that she was passionate about Cleft Advocacy…but let me tell you how she had me BALLING on the other end of the phone! She explained everything that she does for parents dealing with children born with Cleft Lip/Palates and it is AMAZING!!! She even told me she drove 3 hours to be with a Mom whose child was going through surgery…she went and sat with the family! One of the hardest thing is taking your child in for surgery, I thought about the many times we have taken Emma in and all the emotions we have going on that day…I totally lost it on the other end of the phone because she is so SELFLESS!!!
Check Out my Interview Below…
Lisa Wyzlic, wife, mom of 3 and the creator of “A Cleft Moms Bond of Friendship” Facebook group. Lisa is the mom of 3; Matthew (16) the outgoing football player and amazing big brother, Ryan (5) the amazing cleftie who loves to music, singing and dancing, and Aiden (2 ½) the little ruler of the house that loves to make everyone laugh. Lisa loves her job of being a mom and is very passionate about her mission of providing Cleft Lip and Palate Awareness. Lisa describes her mission in A Cleft Moms Bond of Friendship as everyone walking into a family that is truly comforting and supportive of each other.
Wyzlic and her husband found out that their son Ryan had a Cleft Palate at 2 days old. After issues with feeding, the couple found out their son was born with a Cleft Palate. Not knowing much about Cleft Palate, Lisa started research not only for her son but, also for the group that she would eventually start. During this time she gained a lot of knowledge from the nurses in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) and the Internet. Both sources gave her a wealth of information, however, during this time Lisa saw a need for a support group for families of children born with clefts.
Ryan!!!
From the inspiration of her son Ryan, A Cleft Moms Bond of Friendship was created. The group was created as a simple way for Lisa to be there for others. She stated “God knew she would be loving, caring and this is why he blessed her with a special needs child.” The group originally started with 30 members and today it has more than 500 members. Currently the group is set up as an open forum for parents (not just moms) to discuss topics related to their cleft children. In the future they would like to create a group website in addition to the Facebook group. The website will provide one-on-one assistance to parents. Lisa would also like to partner up with the Smiletrain (organization that provides assistance to Cleft Lip and Palate patients and their families), as well as travel to meet and support cleft families during surgeries.
This lady is simply AMAZING in my Book!!!
So glad God saw fit for us to cross paths! A Cleft Mommy’s Bond of Friendship will always have a special place not only in my heart but my family as well!!!
