“When you find out you are pregnant, you expect to have a perfectly healthy pregnancy and, at the end, a perfectly healthy baby,” Paris says quietly, looking back on a journey that reshaped everything she once imagined. She is the mother of Maverick, now 17 months old, a little boy whose life began with uncertainty but has since become a story of resilience, expert care, and deep gratitude. “It took me a long time to come to terms with his diagnosis,” she admits. “But now, I look back and realize how blessed we are to be his parents.”
Paris and her husband, Tyler, learned they were expecting on June 19, 2019. From the beginning, the pregnancy was closely monitored. Their older son had been born prematurely, so Paris had ultrasounds every two weeks early on. At her 19-week scan in September, their obstetrician noticed something unexpected. The baby appeared to have a bilateral cleft lip and palate.
In the United States, thousands of babies are born each year with cleft conditions affecting the lip, palate, or both. These conditions occur when parts of the face and mouth do not fully form during early pregnancy. Without treatment, children can face challenges with feeding, hearing, speech, and frequent ear infections. While Paris understood this intellectually, nothing prepared her for the emotional weight of hearing that her unborn child would need surgery and long-term medical care.
Living in Benton, Missouri, about two hours from St. Louis, Paris and Tyler were advised to seek immediate consultation with a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at SLUCare. Within a week, they traveled to St. Louis, where the diagnosis of bilateral cleft lip and palate was confirmed. Doctors also suspected a possible heart defect known as a ventricular septal defect. Amid the fear and uncertainty, one bright moment emerged: they learned they were having a boy.
Given the complexity of the findings, Paris underwent an amniocentesis and was referred to the St. Louis Fetal Care Institute at SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital. The genetic testing returned normal results, offering some relief. In October 2019, further evaluations brought even better news. A fetal echocardiogram showed no congenital heart defect. For the first time in weeks, Paris and Tyler felt they could focus on preparing for Maverick’s cleft care rather than bracing for multiple unknowns.
That same day, they met Joy Baltz, a clinical nurse coordinator with the St. Louis Cleft-Craniofacial Center. Paris remembers how carefully Joy guided them through the information. “She didn’t overwhelm us,” Paris recalls. “She gave us exactly what we could handle, and suddenly, we had the beginnings of a plan.”
Through Joy, they learned more about the team that would guide Maverick’s care, including Dr. Alexander Lin, Director of the St. Louis Cleft-Craniofacial Center. After hearing from a friend whose child had been treated by him, Paris and Tyler requested Dr. Lin. From that moment on, he became Maverick’s surgeon and a steady presence throughout their journey.
Paris continued monthly follow-ups with her SLUCare obstetrician, and together they planned Maverick’s delivery at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital, close to Cardinal Glennon. “We wanted to be near clinicians who see cleft babies all the time,” Paris explains. “That peace of mind mattered so much.”
Maverick was born at 39 weeks on February 3, 2020. The delivery went smoothly, and he did not require intensive care. His bilateral cleft lip and palate were described as complete, meaning the cleft extended through the lip into the nose and across the full length of the palate. Though he initially fed and breathed well, Paris and Tyler knew early intervention would be essential.
Just three days after birth, Maverick had his first visit to the cleft clinic at St. Louis Cleft-Craniofacial Center. There, they met the multidisciplinary team that would shape his care, including pediatric plastic surgeons, dentists, nurses, and speech-language pathologists. The team works as an affiliate of the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association, ensuring coordinated, comprehensive treatment.
Because Maverick’s cleft was wide, Dr. Lin recommended a staged approach. At six weeks old, Maverick underwent a lip adhesion surgery to bring the tissues closer together before his full repair. In preparation, he wore DynaCleft positioning strips and a nasal alveolar molding device, or NAM, to help align his lip and nose. The process was demanding, involving daily strip changes and weekly dental visits, but Paris and Tyler felt supported every step of the way.
Maverick’s first surgery took place on March 16, 2020, just days before COVID-19 shutdowns began. Despite the uncertainty of the time, he recovered well. His full bilateral cleft lip repair followed in July, after careful coordination to minimize travel and stress for the family. Postoperative visits and months of nasal stents followed, with Joy remaining a constant source of reassurance. “She treated us like family,” Paris says. “She really mothers her babies.”
At 13 months old, on March 3, 2021, Maverick underwent cleft palate repair. The surgery was successful, and his healing progressed beautifully. By spring, he transitioned to annual cleft clinic visits, with any future surgeries likely to be cosmetic rather than functional.
Looking back, Paris speaks with deep gratitude. “Dr. Lin gave us confidence during the scariest time of our lives,” she says. “He walked with us as partners through every stage.” Today, Maverick’s smile tells a story of obstacles turned into milestones, fear transformed into hope.
Paris and Tyler share their story in the hope that it reaches other families standing at the beginning of a similar road. “Our journey taught us that with the right care and the right people, even the hardest diagnoses can be met with strength,” Paris says. “We are so proud of our Maverick — and so thankful for everyone who helped him get here.”