32 The Queens Courier • octoBER 29, 2015 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com HONDURAN TEEN’S LIFE SAVED THROUGH MIRACLE SURGERY AT NORTH SHORE/LIJ BY THE QUEENS COURIER STAFF [email protected] @QueensCourier Talented surgeons at Cohen Children’s Medical Center helped save the life of a teenager from Honduras left with a broken windpipe from a horse-riding accident. “My life is a miracle and that’s a fact,” said Adrian Ehrler, the 15-year-old who survived the miracle surgery at the hospital, located on the grounds of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park. Ehrler sustained a traumatic brain injury in the nearfatal accident in his native Honduras on July 16. Doctors at the local hospital inserted a breathing tube to save his life, but the tube was too large, leaving his windpipe scarred and his breathing compromised. Seeing how her son was suffering and in need of help, his mother Mirabel made a phone call to her sister Nancy, who lives in Woodside. “Aunt Nancy is an FDNY paramedic who told us to come to New York,” the grateful teen said. Upon his arrival on Aug. 15, Adrian was in critical condition. Breathing had become incredibly difficult and his health worsened, but the young, spiritual boy had a vision. “I saw a beautiful angel,” Adrian remembers. “He pointed at me and told me that it wasn’t my time yet.” A few days after arriving to New York, Adrian was in distress. His mother dialed 911 and he was rushed to the Emergency Department at Cohen Children’s Medical Center. Dr. Lee Smith of the hospital’s Division of Pediatric Otolaryngology was called in to evaluate the teen and delivered the news: Adrian was struggling to breathe through an opening of less than 1/8 of an inch. “The difficulty with all this is that we have to make sure that the voice box remains unaffected,” Smith said. “If there is damage in any way, a patient like Adrian might lose the ability to speak.” The next day, Smith and Dr. David Zeltsman, the hospital’s chief of thoracic surgery, performed a tracheal resection and reconstruction. The complex, 3-hour surgery was ultimately successful. Three months later, Adrian publicly showed last week his appreciation to the surgeons who saved his life, men he calls his “heroes.” Because of their medical skill and meticulous care, the teen has the ability to breathe, eat and walk on his own, an outcome previously thought to be impossible. The teen will stay at the center for the remainder of the year for observation. “What I have learned from this is that there is a plan for all of us,” Adrian said. “I know that one day, I will return home and ride horses again. All of this is a miracle.” Photo courtesy of North Shore/LIJ Adrian Ehrler (center) had his life saved through emergency tracheal surgery performed at Cohen Children’s Hospital in New Hyde Park. 104th Precinct hosts first Pink Parade for breast cancer awareness BY KELLY MARIE MANCUSO [email protected] @KellyMMancuso Leaders in local law enforcement teamed up with faculty and students from P.S. 88 in Ridgewood to host its first Pink Parade for Breast Cancer Awareness at the 104th Precinct last week. Students and their teachers dressed in pink marched down Catalpa Avenue on Oct. 22 carrying ribbons and handmade signs of support. They gathered on the precinct steps and were greeting by Executive Commanding Officer Captain Mark Wachter and his team as part of the New York City Police Department’s NYPD Blue Goes Pink initiative. “It’s not only about the police department; it’s about the community. It’s about you the students, helping us out, bringing awareness,” Wachter said. “You’re the future. You’re the ones who, 15 or 20 years from now, will be leading this city. We have to invest in you, look after you and care for you.” P.S. 88 Principal Robert Quintana delivered an inspiring and emotional address in which he remembered family members and faculty who have dealt with the disease. “For me, personally, I lost my aunt to it two years ago. P.S. 88 lost one of our own who left behind a husband and two children,” he explained. “It’s a disease that does not discriminate. We’ve come together for one cause, as a community of Ridgewood and a community of humanitarians, to say that we want people to know that there are things we can do to prevent cancer.” P.S. 88 PTA Alexandra Bauza teamed up with fifth-grade teacher Thomas Brunhuber to create a large, 8-foot-tall pink ribbon adorned with words of encouragement, such as “Fight On” and “Believe,” for those struggling with breast cancer. Brunhuber explained that P.S. 88 is involved in multiple fundraising efforts for a variety of breast cancer organizations, including The Avon Walk for Women, The American Cancer Society and Mammograms in Action. A large pink ribbon was positioned in the precinct’s front door and served as the backdrop for the rally. Captain Wachter used the words displayed on the ribbon to inspire the young students at the rally. Wachter promised to mount the large ribbon on the wall outside the precinct along with the other pink ribbons, signs and décor. The students were each given a pink carnation to bring home to their families in an effort to continue the dialogue about breast cancer and the need for early detection at home. A small group of students read prayers and words of encouragement for the fight against breast cancer. They also thanked the officers for the 104th Precinct for their dedication and led the group in a moment of silence to honor fallen NYPD Officer Randolph Holder. The students held up their signs and the large pink ribbon for an aerial photograph from the precinct’s roof, after which bangs of pink confetti were dropped down onto the crowd, much to the students’ delight. In an added show of hospitality and support, Wachter invited the children to put their handmade signs up inside the precinct. Photo by Kelly Marie Mancuso Students and faculty from P.S. 88 in Ridgewood held up their handmade signs on the steps of the 104th Precinct during the first annual Pink Parade for Breast Cancer Awareness.
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