Who Is Your Hero?

Do you have a personal hero? Tell us about them. It doesn’t have to be perfect to make a difference in someone else’s life.

Your Everyday Hero: Dana Markee

Ever since Dana Markee was born, her family knew she had a condition called scoliosis. Scoliosis is common in America, but Dana’s was one of the worst that a person could get. In her seventh grade year, at age 12, she spent most her time playing sports, it was her life and she was truly happy playing ice hockey. But one day that year, she found out that she must have surgery as soon as possible. Her back had three forty-five degree curves, which makes an “s” shape in ones back. The surgery Dana had consisted of having two titanium rods put in her back to straighten it, along with screws to hold the rods in place. Dana went into surgery in March, and the surgery went well, but the time in the hospital didn't go so well. Dana’s stomach struggled to wake up, and she was unable to eat for almost a week. It got so bad that they had to use a tube and take all the gases out of her stomach. When she was able to eat again, they cleared her to go home again. Dana was forced to stay home from school for about a month and had a tutor come and make sure she didn’t get behind. Dana spent the next months insuring she could come back to hockey and not have changed. About six months later, Dana was given the go ahead to play hockey again. Today, Dana is able to do almost anything she wants aside from certain things that would require her to bend her back in some sort of way.

Submitted by Katie Markee