Annabella Spears spent nearly the first year of her life waiting for a liver transplant to save her life. At eight months old, she received her new liver at Dallas’s Children’s Medical Center. Ten years later, her artwork inspired a Christopher Radko Christmas ornament.
According to the 2011 Beyond ABC report document from Children’s Health, Annabella was diagnosed with “biliary atresia, a rare disease of the liver and bile ducts,” when she was only seven weeks old. In March of 2011, she was placed on the liver transplant list.
Her mother Alexa, a first-time parent, stated, “I didn’t want to ask, but I kept wondering if we would lose her… I just kept thinking that we couldn’t lose our little girl.”
Due to her liver’s repeated failures, Annabella was moved to the top of the transplant list. On June 16, 2011, at eight months old, she went into surgery to receive a life-saving liver transplant at Children’s Medical Center.
NBC DFW mentioned that Annabella has been celebrating her life for the past ten years. She is proud to share her love of art with North Texans and show them the Christopher Radko Christmas ornament inspired by her artwork.
The Annabella-inspired Christmas ornament is adorned with a snowman, two Christmas trees, presents, and a red balloon.
The Women’s Auxiliary to Children’s Medical Center is a group of volunteers who organize and run fundraisers “to help raise funds for the healthcare system so that other families can continue celebrating magical moments.” They are selling the Christopher Radko ornament created by Annabella’s imagination to celebrate her life and support other children.
“Own a unique Radko ornament that was inspired by artwork from a Children’s Health patient,” the website for the Women’s Auxiliary shares. To purchase the ornament influenced by Annabella Spears’ art, click here.