Lubbock Online
Winner of contest at state children's hospital glad to share holiday spirit with others
The call came out of the blue. Someone on the other end of the line talking was about a Christmas card contest. For a moment, Tori Houston wasn't sure what this was all about.
"I didn't have a clue when they called me," she said.
As it turns out, this was no telemarketer. Instead, representatives from the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children were calling to inform Tori that her 8-year-old daughter, Kimbree, had been named a winner in the hospital's annual holiday card contest.
"I had to think back for a minute about what contest," Tori said. "I thought to myself, 'What did she draw?' It was done back at the beginning of the summer."
Kimbree, a second-grader at Rush Elementary School, drew and painted a picture of a rocking horse before providing the caption "Have a rocking good Christmas!" Her artwork will be one of three designs used for the hospital's holiday cards.
"She was so excited when she found out," said Tori, who works as a teacher's assistant at Rush. "All the attention she has gotten has been unbelievable. The teachers at the school were excited, and her art teacher is so excited."
Tori said they learned of the contest early in the summer because Kimbree has been a patient at the hospital off and on since she was diagnosed with hip dysplasia. Tori said her daughter was born prematurely and weighed 1 pound at birth.
Following a stint in the neonatal intensive care unit, Kimbree was referred to the Scottish Rite facility, which was founded in 1921 and has become one of the nation's leading medical centers for the treatment of pediatric orthopedic conditions. She was diagnosed with pediatric scoliosis at age 1, and since has made regular visits to the facility in Dallas.
"Her entire life, since she was born, she has been in some kind of an apparatus," Tori said. "She has never yet been without anything. As soon as school let out this past summer, she went into having a halo (a device for immobilizing the head) and being put in a wheelchair. In October, she was back at Scottish Rite having growing rods put in her back."
Through it all, Kimbree has kept a smile and an optimistic outlook.
She may also have a bright future as an artist. In addition to the holiday card, Kimbree drew a horse and painted it for the PTA Reflections program. That effort has won first-place honors at the school and regional level, Tori said
"She doesn't let anything slow her down," Tori said. "To look at her, you would never guess she has been through anything like she's been through."
It was a summer trip to the hospital that opened the door to the holiday card contest, which has been held each year since 1987. The winning designs are sold to the public, with proceeds benefiting patients at the hospital. Kimbree's card was one of three selected from more than 50 entries.
"We happened to be at the hospital for a check-up, and the appointment was over and we were waiting for a taxi to take us back to the airport," Tori said. "A lady handed us a piece of paper and looked right at Kimbree and told her she might want to do this. I put the paper in my purse and didn't think about it until a few days after we got back home. It was the Christmas card contest, and Kimbree decided she wanted to draw a rocking horse."
Horses occupy a special place in Kimbree's heart. Her mother explained that Kimbree has enjoyed the benefits of horse therapy since she was 3.
"Kimbree has very much loved horses since she was a small kid," Tori said. "She does horse therapy, and that's where that love came from."
The dose of holiday cheer couldn't have come at a better time for her daughter, who is also a straight-A student, Tori said.
"This is exactly what she needed," she said. "Everything that she has gone through and had to deal with, with her medical history - She's said to me before, 'Mom, why can't I be like the other kids?' This said it all. This did it right here. She's just like all the other kids."
"I didn't have a clue when they called me," she said.
As it turns out, this was no telemarketer. Instead, representatives from the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children were calling to inform Tori that her 8-year-old daughter, Kimbree, had been named a winner in the hospital's annual holiday card contest.
"I had to think back for a minute about what contest," Tori said. "I thought to myself, 'What did she draw?' It was done back at the beginning of the summer."
Kimbree, a second-grader at Rush Elementary School, drew and painted a picture of a rocking horse before providing the caption "Have a rocking good Christmas!" Her artwork will be one of three designs used for the hospital's holiday cards.
"She was so excited when she found out," said Tori, who works as a teacher's assistant at Rush. "All the attention she has gotten has been unbelievable. The teachers at the school were excited, and her art teacher is so excited."
Tori said they learned of the contest early in the summer because Kimbree has been a patient at the hospital off and on since she was diagnosed with hip dysplasia. Tori said her daughter was born prematurely and weighed 1 pound at birth.
Following a stint in the neonatal intensive care unit, Kimbree was referred to the Scottish Rite facility, which was founded in 1921 and has become one of the nation's leading medical centers for the treatment of pediatric orthopedic conditions. She was diagnosed with pediatric scoliosis at age 1, and since has made regular visits to the facility in Dallas.
"Her entire life, since she was born, she has been in some kind of an apparatus," Tori said. "She has never yet been without anything. As soon as school let out this past summer, she went into having a halo (a device for immobilizing the head) and being put in a wheelchair. In October, she was back at Scottish Rite having growing rods put in her back."
Through it all, Kimbree has kept a smile and an optimistic outlook.
She may also have a bright future as an artist. In addition to the holiday card, Kimbree drew a horse and painted it for the PTA Reflections program. That effort has won first-place honors at the school and regional level, Tori said
"She doesn't let anything slow her down," Tori said. "To look at her, you would never guess she has been through anything like she's been through."
It was a summer trip to the hospital that opened the door to the holiday card contest, which has been held each year since 1987. The winning designs are sold to the public, with proceeds benefiting patients at the hospital. Kimbree's card was one of three selected from more than 50 entries.
"We happened to be at the hospital for a check-up, and the appointment was over and we were waiting for a taxi to take us back to the airport," Tori said. "A lady handed us a piece of paper and looked right at Kimbree and told her she might want to do this. I put the paper in my purse and didn't think about it until a few days after we got back home. It was the Christmas card contest, and Kimbree decided she wanted to draw a rocking horse."
Horses occupy a special place in Kimbree's heart. Her mother explained that Kimbree has enjoyed the benefits of horse therapy since she was 3.
"Kimbree has very much loved horses since she was a small kid," Tori said. "She does horse therapy, and that's where that love came from."
The dose of holiday cheer couldn't have come at a better time for her daughter, who is also a straight-A student, Tori said.
"This is exactly what she needed," she said. "Everything that she has gone through and had to deal with, with her medical history - She's said to me before, 'Mom, why can't I be like the other kids?' This said it all. This did it right here. She's just like all the other kids."
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