Category: Faith

We have been here before
Faith · Hope

We have been here before

dawnhirnLeave a comment

There are so many heroes, like our firefighters, who are taking intentional strides into this pandemic, and at great personal risk.

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I would say they are coming “out of the woodwork” to serve, but, truth be told, they’ve always been at the forefront during local and national crisis’s. “We simply cannot stay home with our families, like we are asking everyone to do.” 

“We’ve been here before. This is not our first walk around the block. We accept the challenge and we are, day-after-day, moving out into our nation’s neighborhoods!” 

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Post-9/11, firefighters answered the call in our first taste of biological terrorism with the anthrax scares. “White powder” calls became commonplace. Our identified, detected and mitigated hundreds of calls (both real and fictitious) without a single injury or fatality.

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“During this pandemic, our job necessarily requires us to enter unknown buildings, residences, and business retail establishments, and come in direct physical contact with the public,” said a Florida Fire Chief. 

Firefighters place a premium on being adequately prepared, equipped and attired for every type of call we respond to. Every single fire response carries the added risk of deadly virus transmission.

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“We need to increase the equipment necessary to protect ourselves as much as possible, so our healthy and resilient fire departments continue providing emergency services,” an Alabama firefighter said.

All over the nation firefighters are posting photos where they are holding signs saying: “I came to work for you, please stay home for me.”

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Here is their bottom line: “We are the fire service and we put our citizens first, as we’ve sworn that we will do. We will not back down.” 

We at RyanShines are deliberately moving in gratitude toward these fighting men and women by purchasing protective materials, and by giving encouragement.

Why not join with us in our creative responses to our first responders. Ask me how. 

dawn

(I am going to take a break from writing my blogpost every week. We’ve been at it for more than 3 years. Tyler has come home from Auburn during this chaos and our family is all together. They are my singular priority. I will return when the smoke clears. We, at RyanShines, will continue to abide with you in indestructible faith, hope and love).

Aaron: less than 10% chance of Survival
Encouragement · Faith · Hope

Aaron: less than 10% chance of Survival

dawnhirnLeave a comment

Aaron’s life was 24 days old, when his biological father submerged him in scalding water, burning over 45% of his small body.

hot water burns

 

The doctors gave him less than a 10% chance of surviving.

Aaron was placed into a medically induced coma and underwent skin grafting, where they removed skin from his hip and used it to reconstruct his right ear.

Returning home after 4 months in the hospital, Aaron wore tight, full-body compression garments which caused him pain and severe discomfort.

He had a hard time sleeping, keeping food down, as he struggled to grow.

The doctors prepared his mother for the years of hard work ahead including a limited range of motion, significant scarring, and numerous surgeries.

With the skills and talents of medical professionals and overwhelming love from his family, Aaron survived and thrived.

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After a traumatic injury, there are many difficult questions for a young man to understand. 

Fortunately, Aaron enjoyed many visits to burn camp, where he learned that there were other children who had also suffered burns; allowing him to understand that he was not facing his challenges alone.

Today, at age 16, Aaron has grown into a happy, healthy young man who is realizing that he can do and become whatever he chooses.

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Aaron today

He is still an active member of the Burn Institute family and now helps others facing the same challenges he once did. 

He believes all people have challenges and that his burns are part of his life, but not something that defines him.

dawn

BTW-(If this is something that you would like to support, please visit us at www.ryanshines.com or follow us on FB and IG @ryanshinesburnfoundation

Hospital staff=family
Faith · healing-over-pain · Hope · Motherhood

Hospital staff=family

dawnhirnLeave a comment

“I was outside shoveling dirt, while my husband was operating the tractor. Our young daughter Ashlynn was inside.

 

Suddenly we heard a very loud BOOM, and, then, screams coming from inside the house.

Ashlynn came running to us on fire from the waist up.

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Her long brown hair was completely fried.

She was burned on her head, face, ears, hands, and legs.

Her body was cut from the shards of glass (the shower door had exploded).

 

She kept repeating, “I’m sorry momma, I thought it was a candle.”

It was a firecracker that sizzled for a second and caught fire.

She tried to put out the fire with a towel and the towel burst into flames. 

The fire had spread to my side of the vanity where there were a few aerosol cans. 

The explosion shattered the shower door.

We grabbed her up and drove her to our local ER. 

She was life-flighted from our hometown of Tahlequah, Oklahoma to the closest city where they removed a piece of glass the size of a pea from her eye.

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Then we were flown to Galveston to the Shriner’s Burns Hospital for Children. 

 

We were in that hospital for a month.

She is so courageous.

We continued to return there every few months for check-ups and it was always the same–like going home.

Hospital staff = family.

Now, her hair is growing back, she is enjoying school, and back to riding her dirt bike.

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She is partially blind in one eye, but she has learned to compensate.

She is doing better with the stares and questions.

She has come a long way and has been so strong and resilient. 

We thank God every day we still have ‘our little Miracle’ in our lives.

Much love to everyone surviving a burn injury.

I believe it does get better.

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Ashlynn & me

 

We hold onto each other as we travel our common journeys.” Ashlynn’s mom

dawn

BTW-(If this is something that you would like to support, please visit us at www.ryanshines.com or follow us on FB and IG @ryanshinesburnfoundation)

 

“To face unafraid the plans that we’ve made”
Faith · Family · Hope

“To face unafraid the plans that we’ve made”

dawnhirnLeave a comment

couple snowSleighbells ring, are you listening?

In the lane, snow is glistening:

A beautiful sight, we’re happy tonight 

walking in a winter wonderland.

Later on, we’ll conspire, 

as we dream by the fire:

To face unafraid 

the plans that we’ve made, 

walking in a winter wonderland.“

It’s a strange moment in the Christmas jingle when they sit by the fire in winter and dream of facing the future without fear.

We sit together this week, basking in the soft glow of candlelight, our hearts warmed by old, old stories and familiar faces.

3 kings

It’s easy to think that the Christmas Season is mostly about the size and temperature of the stable, the wisdom of the three kings, about Mary’s hope, the innkeeper’s hospitality, the songs of angels, and the birth of the child.

The main characters of the Story wrestle with a lot of fear, even terror.

It’s true about every one of us.

We read about Mary’s anxiety, Joseph’s fear of marriage, the shepherds’ fright over the angel-choir, King Herod’s anger, the wise men’s terror of King Herod’s wrath.

Every scene in the Story moves between fascination and fear, between terror and wonder.

There is no emotion in this Story that we haven’t felt.

The question posed to each character, and to each of us is this: “will we, at this crucial moment in our lives, be frozen in our fear, or lured on by the “Wonder of the star?”

Kaleigh:lovely:dawn
Dawn, Lovely & Kaleigh

We at RyanShines are committed to riding the emotional roller-coaster with our dear burn survivors and firefighters.

We stand by our purpose  that “no burn child will be left behind and no Firefighter is forgotten.”

Happy Holidays to everyone, from Ron, Dawn, Tyler, Trenton, Colton & (angel Ryan) Hirn

dawn

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Ryan & Tyler 2000

2010 to 2011 Argentina to London 059
Trenton, Colton, Tyler & Chloe  ’10

 

 

“Girl, you’ve gotta carry that weight a long time!”
Faith · Family · healing-over-pain · Hope · Motherhood

“Girl, you’ve gotta carry that weight a long time!”

dawnhirn2 Comments

This is the story of a mother and son.

It is a hard-luck love story between Monica and her ten-year-old, Lucas.

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Lucas

The whole family was gathered around the table for Christmas dinner.

Each person had their own pan over a fondue burner.

What happened was the fuel was running low, so Lucas’ grandmother got up to go into the kitchen to refill the gas.

When she removed the lid to pour more fuel into the pan, a flame shot across and consumed Lucas from his face down to his belly button.

“I was still at the table,” Monica said, “and had no idea that Lucas was burning.

The kitchen caught fire and when I turned, all I could see was my little boy on fire.

I froze.

His dad ripped his clothes off, put out the fire, carried Lucas to the car, and we raced to the hospital.

I was amazingly calm on the outside but my heart was breaking.”

Like always, Christmas is here again, and Monica has felt it slithering toward her since September.

Talk about carrying so much weight for such a long time!

Every year is always heavy.

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It breaks the most resilient spirit.

 

 

Lucas has had nine surgeries, with more to come.

Monica was in there for the first one and it was unbearable.

Whenever Lucas is in the hospital he does the same thing.

He shines a light of reassurance to mom and lets her know he’s “doing well.”

He continually gives her the gift of his own strength so she won’t be afraid.

In the past two months, Monica has found the courage to say to herself: “THIS IS HARD!”

But she knew that things have been so hard for Lucas, that she didn’t deserve to admit that things were hard for her, too.

Her vulnerability is unfolding, and she has discovered a deeper love than she’s ever known.

For Lucas.Bs-Lucas2

Lucas is fourteen now and in high school.

His faith in God is contagious.

He is so bright in his classes.

He’s on the wrestling team.

Last week he won Gold in the Elite division.

He removes his shirt bearing the scars on his chest, and he is not the least bit self-conscious.

They are his medals, too.

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Mom & son(Monica & Lucas)

 

dawn

Rising from the ashes
Encouragement · Faith · healing-over-pain · wounded healer

Rising from the ashes

dawnhirnLeave a comment

“My name is Lisa Beckwith. I was burned On November 9, 2017.

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Lisa

It was a beautiful fall evening and my family and I were outside enjoying a nice fire in our fire pit.

After a while, my husband and teenage daughter and son went in for the night.

I loved the quiet privacy.

When I decided to turn-in for the night, I stood up out of my chair and stepped on the left corner of my robe and fell into the fire pit.

My chin hit the steel ring and my hands broke my fall in the hot coals.

With unexpected strength, I pushed myself out of the pit.

I ran to the bathroom, splashed cold water over my face and grabbed a towel.

I honestly didn’t think that I had been badly burned. When I looked in the mirror, I was horrified.

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My son and daughter heard the commotion and ran into the bathroom to see what was going on.

They were horrified, too, seeing skin hanging from my face and hands.

They called my husband, who was already asleep.

He came running and, in minutes, had me bandaged and on our way to the hospital.

Upon arriving, the hospital determined I needed to be at a facility that was highly skilled at treating burn victims.

So I was admitted to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and into the Burn Center.

 

I was burned badly on the right side of my face and both hands.bs-lisa 2

A good amount of hair was burned as well.

Ironically, the robe I was wearing that night ended-up saving the rest of my body.

They skin-grafted both hands.

Then, in a few months, I had a second graft surgery on my left hand.

I have some limitations to what I can do with my hands.

I always will, but I am grateful the limitations are minimal.

My scars are deep, but wearing compression gloves helps me do everyday tasks.

Overall, my healing was miraculous.

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What I didn’t expect was the strength it takes to heal emotionally.

But I have a strong faith and that’s the main reason why I’m making such progress in my healing process.

I certainly have my share of bad days.

I allow myself to have them, but I refuse to focus on them.

I encourage people to find the good that is in everything. 

And, trust me, I mean EVERYTHING.”

dawn

Faith · Grief · Hope

Firefighters rush into the burning Towers (d.343)

dawnhirnLeave a comment

 At 8:45 A.M. on September 11, 2001, an airplane slammed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

9:11 ff going in

I thought it was a horrible piece of flying since three airports were in close proximity.

But, then, twenty minutes later, most of us saw for ourselves a second airplane slamming into the South Tower, and exploded like a ball of fire.

This was no accident.

It was a deliberate act of aggression.

Thirty-five minutes later a third plane crashed into the Pentagon leaving a gaping hole in its side.

The fourth plane crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

As for the death count, 2996 men and women died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Firefighters Todd Heaney and Frankie DiLeo, of Engine 209, c

And the World Trade Center was gone for good.

Americans of sixty national backgrounds were in the towers.

But as horrific as that was, the terrorists struck every one of us. 

Firefighters Raise A U.S. Flag At The Site Of The World Trade Center

This morning, my dear friends, I am crying again, while at the same time, my heart swells with respect and deep gratitude for the New York City Fire Departments(FDNY).

Ten House(fire station next door) arrived first and rushed into the Towers.

Two-hundred-fourteen fire vehicles (44 units) responded.

Over the past 6 months, I have met more than 600 firefighters throughout Alabama, Texas, and Florida.

I look into their eyes and every time I see the same single-minded commitment as the brave ones in New York. 

We stand and raise our voices to shout our praise to them, to sing our love to them, to honor their sacrifices, and to continue the sweet melodies of their lives.

We proclaim the land where they died a sacred place, where they showed us a degree of vulnerability far beyond our imagination.

Living well and loving courageously is our best revenge. 

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dawn

BTW-(If this is something that you would like to support, please visit us at www.ryanshines.com or follow us on FB and IG @dawnraymondhirn)

 

“All I did was pray in the ambulance.”
Faith · healing-over-pain · Hope · Relationship

“All I did was pray in the ambulance.”

dawnhirnLeave a comment

I’m going to tell you a story, but the star of our story is way bigger than a simple story.

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Jadah at Camp Conquest ’18

She’s a capital “S” Story!

Jadah is the girl, and she is God’s ‘S’tory!

The secret word here is one of the best words ever:  MIRACLE!

Jadah was burned over much of her body.

She and her cousins woke up early and went out back to re-light the bonfire of the night before.

One of her cousins opened a can of gas to help the fire along.

Suddenly, the fire backed-up into the can, he dropped it and it exploded on Jadah!

She ran into the house on fire and somebody called 911.

The hospital was 45 miles away, and it took that long for the ambulance to arrive.

Jadah sat her burning body down in a chair to wait.

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Jadah & Cpt. Cheeney Catching Courage ’18

There was so much pain she began to think she wouldn’t make it.

“All I did was to pray in the ambulance,” she told me.

Jadah said, ”It was so rough fighting in the hospital.

All the medicine they shot in me made me feel really weird and not myself.

I remember the pain.

Nothing could reach it.

It was all over me, and it was so horrible and so hard!

But it also really made me fight.

And even while I was fighting I realized God was busy working on me, too, inside and out!”

CC Jadah fish

Spoiler alert! Here comes the MIRACLE!

“I was miracle-healed!” (I couldn’t believe what I was hearing!)

She began to cry and said it again: “I was miracle-healed. God took most of my scars away!

God was giving me a second chance.”

Finally, she said, “I want to thank the firefighters, the paramedics, and the police officers.

They are all heroes!

My dad is a firefighter, and I know it hurt him almost as much as me!”

There was so much Courage sitting across from me.

Jadah dolphin
Jadah’s new friend  Catching Courage ’18

But more than anything, her deep gratitude.

dawn

#catchingcourage #ryanshines

BTW-(If this is something that you would like to support, please visit us at www.ryanshines.com or follow us on FB and IG @dawnraymondhirn)

 

 

 

The First American Dream(1630)
Encouragement · Faith · Hope

The First American Dream(1630)

dawnhirnLeave a comment

“We shall be a City on a Hill; the eyes of the people of the world are on us. We must delight in each other, and make our neighbor’s condition our own. 

ranier

“We must rejoice together, cry together, work and suffer together; always having the Promise of Independence in our sights.” —John Winthrop, “The First American Dream”

war

We’re on the cusp of 2020 and members of that same holy dream.

We are citizens of the City on a Hill.

This original dream lifts us up beyond ourselves so that we stand on the shoulders of our first American heroes(our first families) and catch their Spirit of Freedom. 

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My nieces on Lake Martin!

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Trenton, Luke, Jake & Tyler-Lake Martin

Let’s celebrate the 4th and our Independence!

4th.png

dawn

Faith · Hope

Hearts and Minds working together

dawnhirnLeave a comment

Once upon a time, in the days just after receiving God’s Original Blessing, it hit me that my Blessing wasn’t mostly for me to keep in a mid-sized Safety Deposit Box.

It wasn’t mine to hide or hoard.

Ryan
Ryan

So, I freed my mind to move around wherever it wants to explore.

It went directly to my heart. Pretty awesome combo, ‘hearts and minds’ working together side-by-side!

Everywhere they went I followed with no idea where we were going.

But at every turn, I kept seeing children.

Children that had been burned, but had survived.

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I suddenly KNEW my Blessing was for these courageous burn survivors and our uniformed heroes who ran into burning buildings to search and rescue.

My dream was beginning to multiply like rabbits. 

My next brainstorm was The Foundation.

We named it after our seven-year-old boy, Ryan, who was killed in our burning car.

Here was a deeper dimension to my Blessing: ”Ryan Shines Burn Foundation.”

And our mission is to advise and help pediatric burn survivors with scholarships for their education and for attending Burn Camp; and to nurture the hearts and minds of Firefighters across the country.

ff 2 babie
photo by Janelle Anderson

Thank you for helping Ryan shine on and on…

dawn

Next week, I’ll share another lovely part of my Blessing.

BTW-(If this is something that you would like to support, please visit us at www.ryanshines.com or follow us on FB and IG @dawnraymondhirn)