2015 Kid Captain Hall of Fame

Kaelea Butterfield

Kaelea has severe, life-threatening asthma and in 2010, she was flown by air ambulance from Cedar Rapids to University of Iowa Stead Family Children's Hospital with a serious asthma attack. She was intubated and placed into a medically induced coma to allow her body to heal.

Reagen Kopsieker

Reagen was 11 days old when she had her first heart surgery and remained in the hospital for three months. She would have three more surgeries in the following years, and in January 2013, Reagen received a heart transplant.

Beau Atkinson

Beau’s parents noticed unusual bruising on Beau’s body when he was just 6 months old and were concerned that something was wrong. Their fears were confirmed during a routine well-baby check – there was an abnormality with Beau’s blood.

Drake Fricke

Drake was just a few days old when he was diagnosed with Hirschsprung’s disease, a condition in the large intestine that causes problems with passing stool. He was referred to UI Stead Family Children's Hospital when he was 3 years old.

Lincoln Ortman

Lincoln was just 5 months old when he was diagnosed with PELVIS syndrome, a congenital condition in which he had several birth defects. After a visit to a neurosurgeon in South Dakota, where his family lived at the time, Lincoln and his parents were referred to UI Stead Family Children's Hospital.

Sean Peck

When Sean was 9 days old, his parents learned that newborn screening tests showed their baby had cystic fibrosis. Just a day later, an unrelated issue caused him to stop breathing and he was taken to UI Stead Family Children's Hospital. While there, Sean’s parents met with the cystic fibrosis care team to learn about his condition and what to expect.

Seth Barton

During a physical the summer before his freshman year of high school, Seth’s family doctor noticed he was shorter and weighed less than his sister, who was three years younger. He sent Seth for X-rays, and discovered his growth plates were not where they should be for his age.

Nick Showman

Nick was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle degeneration and weakness, when he was 4 years old. He and his family worked with the pediatric neurology team to understand what to expect and what challenges lay in front of them.

Logan Brown

Logan was born in Mason City, Iowa where doctors discovered he had a blood clot near a large vein that carries blood to his heart. He was transferred to University of Iowa Stead Family Children's Hospital, where he was admitted into the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Further tests showed he had microcephaly, or a small head, and his cerebellum had not fully formed.

Laila Walton

Laila’s mom, Christine, called UI Stead Family Children's Hospital hoping for answers. After many tests and hospitalizations, Laila was diagnosed with Hypokalemic Periodic Paralysis, a rare genetic kidney disorder in which the potassium and sodium in her body are at odds. There is no cure, and it’s something Laila will have for the rest of her life.

Colton Barker

When Colton was just 2 years old, a doctor in his hometown found a tumor and immediately referred the toddler and his parents to University of Iowa Stead Family Children's Hospital. Doctors at UI Stead Family Children's Hospital diagnosed him with retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the retina that mostly affects young children.

Abi Frye

The only treatment for preeclampsia is to deliver the baby. At 25 weeks pregnant, Julie was taken by ambulance and Abi was born the next day, weighing just over 1 pound.

Makayla Bell

Makayla was born three weeks premature at UI Stead Family Children's Hospital with additional birth defects. The doctors diagnosed her with OEIS syndrome, which occurs in just one of 300,000 infants. Once Makayla was born, a team of pediatric specialists worked together to develop a plan of care and she had her first surgery at just five days old.