Fraternal 3-year-old twins Anderson and Rhett Davis spent Thursday afternoon mixing Blizzards as part of Miracle Treat Day.
The Davis family was chosen as the 2021 Miracle Champion Family that represents the Children’s Miracle Network. Miracle Treat Day benefits the Children’s Miracle Network at Medical Center Health System.
Kelby Davis, the mother of Anderson and Rhett, said her children have used the services provided by the Children’s Miracle Network as they were born 6 weeks premature. Kelby Davis said her twins spent 21 days in the neonatal intensive care unit at Medical Center Hospital.
“From the second Anderson was born, she was put on life support,” Kelby Davis explained. “She was on a ventilator. She had three blood transfusions. Both of the babies were on breathing help, oxygen, they had central lines, they both had trouble gaining weight and staying warm.”
The Children’s Miracle Network continued to work with the Davis family after Anderson Davis was the youngest victim of the Odessa mass shooter on Aug. 31, 2019. Anderson Davis was taken to Medical Center Hospital and then transferred to University Medical Center in Lubbock by helicopter.
In a previous Odessa American article, Kelby Davis detailed the extent of her daughter’s injuries “she had her first surgeries with shrapnel being removed from her chest and her mouth and tongue with the holes in her tongue and lip being sewn up. Then we came home and a couple of weeks later she was able to have surgery to have her teeth removed because the bullet knocked out three of her teeth.”
On Thursday at the Dairy Queen located at 2761 N. Grandview Avenue, Anderson Davis was running around, smiling, dancing and helping make her own Blizzard.
Kelby Davis said the care from the Children’s Miracle Network hasn’t gone unnoticed by her two children. Kelby Davis said Anderson and Rhett are aware of how much Children’s Miracle Network has helped them.
“One thing about the children’s past is that we’ve never hidden it from them,” Kelby Davis said. “…. They know that they were sick babies in the hospital. They’ve seen pictures of them with tubes and on the ventilator. They’ve seen many pictures of Anderson in recovery.
“We chose to take some of the tragic moments of our lives and use them as teaching moments with our kids to show them how a community comes together to rally around each other and support. We also need to give back to our community for loving on us.”
Haley Swack, the program director for the Children’s Miracle Network at Medical Center Health System, said she has known the Davis family for a number of years and she said it’s amazing to have them as this year’s Miracle Champion Family.
“The Davis family is near and dear to our hearts,” Swack said. “…. Time and time again they have used our pediatric services.”
Dairy Queen District Manager Eli Franco said there are two special days the company takes part in every year and it’s Miracle Treat Day and Free Cone Day.
In addition to those two days, Franco said people can round up their ticket and that money will also be donated to the Children’s Miracle Network.
“Whenever you round up, all those donations go toward the Children’s Miracle Network and we do that year round,” Franco said.
