  Born on April 16, 1981 Entered Heaven August 17, 1983   This page is lovingly dedicated to Patrick Joel Mielke, child of God, loaned to us for a very short time. This is a celebration of his life, and the love and joy he so enriched our lives with.  From the second the doctor said "It's a Boy!", our lives began to change by leaps and bounds! Patrick arrived on Maundy Thursday, the 16th of April in 1981. He weighed in at 10lbs. 10 1/2oz! We were SO proud! Patrick was our second son. His big brother, Nicholas, was just 2 1/2 years old but he was a proud big brother! Patrick was born with a condition called "congenital hip displasia", so when we left the hospital just 24 hours after his birth, he was wearing this clumsy (but necessary) brace that held his hips apart. Patrick was a good baby! He loved to fall asleep in the bean bag chair we had. He would be content for hours in his swing, watching Nick and the rest of us. When Patrick was 10 months old, the Lord blessed us with another miracle. We now had a baby girl! Without Patrick's easy going spirit and all of Nick's eagerness to help, I would have been fit to be tied! When Patrick was 12 months old he weighed 20lbs. and had a good checkup. It was during his second year that he began to have ear infections and sore throats. At the time it seemed to us, just to be something all kids went through. Our lives were busy, but happy. When Patrick was 2, he was still having the ear infections and had not gained any weight (but 20 lbs was still not a bad weight). The ear infections continued, and in August of 1983, the doctor reccommended he have his tonsils and adenoids removed. The doctor explained that Patrick's failure to thrive, his lack of weight gain and his continual sore throats and ear infections, was an indication that he needed the surgery. So, on August 12th, I took Patrick to the hospital for the usual bloodwork and to spend the night before surgery. My husband nor I were really concerned about this routine procedure. That night Patrick wouldn't sleep in his crib at the hospital, so I held him all night long. He was restless and didn't understand why we were sleeping in someone else's bed! How I cherish the memories of that night, and thank the Lord that I got to hold him and show and tell him how much I loved him. The next morning his Daddy met us in his room, and as I held Patrick, and we walked with him in our arms to the elevator, my heart hurt. As I handed him to the nurse that would take him upstairs in the elevator, to the surgical suite, he cried and reached out for me to take him. I felt so sad in that moment. From there, my husband and I went to the waiting area. They said it would only be an hour or less, but as that time came and went, we heard nothing. My husband inquired as to what was taking so long, and we were told that the surgery scheduled ahead of Patrick's was taking longer than expected. We were satisfied with that answer, but after another hour, we were getting more and more concerned. Once again, we were reassured that everything was alright and we should hear something soon. After what seemed an eternity, the waiting room nurse told us the doctor would be right down to talk to us, and we were relieved. The next thing we knew, we were whisked into this room across the hall, the door was shut,and there sat 2 doctors still in scrubs. They began to talk about monitors going off, machines not working properly, changing leads, he was in recovery, there was a nurse with him.......I felt like SCREAMING! "What are you saying?", I asked. They told us there had been a problem...Patrick had apparently stopped breathing, the monitor went off, but because of recent problems with the equipment, they changed the leads for the heart monitor. Patrick was recovering slowly and should be in his room soon...we could wait there. There was too much information to process in such a short time. What were they really saying? More time passed without our son being returned to his room and I inquired again. We were told he was not coming out of the anesthesia as quickly as they thought he would. I begged to go to him in recovery, but was told I could not - only trained personnel were allowed. It seemed like an eternity passed when he was finally placed in his room. It was a sight I was not prepared for. He was hooked up to all kinds of monitors, he had tubes coming from everywhere, and this little buzzer kept going off. My husband and I were then whisked off to another room where we were told Patrick had suffered a heart attack during surgery, and quit breathing. It was "nothing they had done", and they weren't sure why this happened. I kept thinking this was a horrible nightmare and I would wake, and this would be gone. I was wrong. I sat with Patrick, touching him, talking to him, caressing his little face. We were led to believe, at this time, that things were still going to be ok...that he would remain in the hospital a little longer than anticipated. My husband and I knew better and called our folks to come and be with us. Eight hours after going to surgery, Patrick was transferred to a pediatric intensive care unit at a hospital in another city. After a thorough evaluation, we were told that Patrick had suffered a heart attack and was in a coma. They would know more after further tests were completed, also, time would tell. To make this long story shorter, we were told on the 5th day after surgery, Patrick had suffered brain death, and that we needed to make some final arrangements. It is amazing how the Lord works, as we received this news...news that would forever change our lives, we were given the opportunity to turn our tragedy into hope for another momma and daddy who's child lay dying, in the hospital. This little girl needed some of Patrick's organs to have a chance at life. I am so thankful that during this dark hour in our lives, we had the presence of mind to make that choice. For anyone who has ever had to live through the loss of a child, whether it be very young, or past those early years, you know the story doesn't end there. After the organ transplantation took place, we were informed that an autopsy was required. Although everything took place in a swift manner, the turmoil didn't end. Arrangements had to be made- what, when, where, who, and WHY...all questions that had to be answered. Although it has been 16 years for us, since his death, the loss is still significant. I have learned to live and love again. It is very important for me, that others know that Patrick LIVED! He was REAL, not just to me, but to the rest of the world. I have his memories and if I close my eyes and listen carefully, I can still hear his small voice saying "mommy". Sometimes I can hear his laugh! He was a sweet child that the Lord loaned to us for a very short time. He filled our hearts with joy and sunshine! Now he is sitting on Jesus' knee listening to those wonderful stories and waiting til it's time for us to be reunited. I love you, my little son!
Words by Anna B. Warner, 1859.
  Please go to PATRICK'S STORY CONTINUED, to read the rest of his story.
Also, visit my little SCRAPBOOK. It's delightfully fun!! And let my mom know you were there. Want to do some webring surfing? I am a member of some great webrings and you can meet lots of nice folks on them. A couple are listed below and then there are more on my webrings page. Click P.J.'s Webrings.  
   He is wearing the green organ donor ribbon.  On August 6, 1999.  |
The green ribbon symbolizes organ donation. Every day boys and girls, men and women, die without receiving the organs that would give them a new lease on life. A little girl received our son's organs when he went to heaven. We proudly wear the green ribbon on our website in hopes of convincing others of the critical need, and the great hope that organ donation can give.
