Hospital Surprises Parents Of Pediatric ICU Patient With Spe

Hospital Surprises Parents Of Pediatric ICU Patient With Special Anniversary Dinner

Carey and Tammy Rogers are the parents of a 14-year-old boy with muscular dystrophy. They love their son so much and they have always put their child's needs before their own. Unfortunately, their son was in the hospital on their anniversary. They don't want to celebrate outside and leave their son at the hospital. Touched by the Rogers' story, the hospital staff put together a special surprise they'd never forget.

Turner Rogers, their son was born with congenital myotonic muscular dystrophy. This is a disorder that weakens a person's muscles over time. People who have the disease can gradually lose the ability to do everyday tasks.

Turner spent much of life in and out of Children's at Scottish Rite Pediatric Hospital in Atlanta, where he sees specialists, undergoes surgeries and seeks treatment when he becomes ill, his parents told The Huffington Post. In May, Turner was rushed into emergency surgery, which required a long recovery.

June 11 is a very special day for the family as it was Turner's 21st day in the PICU and his parents' 21st wedding anniversary. His parents had hoped to celebrate their anniversary with a dinner at a restaurant, the night before the big day was a rough one as Turner's health took a bad turn so they decided to just stay at the hospital and look after their son. "We just could not stand to leave Turner for even a few hours," the parents said.

"Knowing the dedicated parents that they are, I knew this meant that they would not leave the unit to go out to dinner like they had planned, but instead spend their night sitting at the bedside with Turner," Emily Finn, a Family Experience Liaison at the hospital told HuffPost. So Finn teamed up with volunteer services to create a special in-hospital date night for the Rogers.

An ordinary conference room was turned into a "private restaurant" with the help of a group of teen volunteers. Thehe hospital's own Chef Bradley served some of the couple's favorite dishes. A red rose and special invitation to their anniversary dinner was sent to the Rogers.

In that special evening, the hospital staff escorted them to the room. They were surprised when they saw beautiful paper flowers hung from the ceiling, a white table cloth-covered table with a candlelit dinner of delicious Italian food, sparkling cider and strawberry cheesecake. "The liaison had even purchased gifts including framed photographs and anniversary sentiments," the Rogers recalled. "We were overwhelmed and knew our 21st anniversary would be one we would always remember."

To learn when to "agree to disagree" is the biggest advice that the couple can give after 21 years of marriage, Tammy and Carey told HuffPost. Though couples should always work to reach a compromise, it's important to "get your view points out into the open and come to a middle ground from the two views," they said.

"When Turner was born, people told us having a special needs child would either make your marriage or break your marriage," they continued. "We chose to make it, and we have. It is not always easy, but when we look into our son’s eyes it is all worth it."

Today, Turner is in the hospital's Comprehensive Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit (CIRU), where he receives physical, occupational, speech, and music therapies to help him return to presurgery levels before making the transition home.

Finn says she hopes that the Rogers family's story will inspire people to "treat others will kindness." She said, "Everyone is fighting a battle and something as small as a smile can really brighten their day."