Meet Thomas, a patient who is treated by our experts in the Center for Excellence in Hand.

Blog written by Thomas, of Bulverde, TX.

It's hard for me to describe my first experience with Scottish Rite for Children, since I have been coming here since I was just 9 months old and now I am 17. I was born without a thumb and with two extra vertebrae in my spine. I don’t live in Dallas, but my family knew about Scottish Rite because my grandfather had been a Scottish Rite Mason.
 
While I don’t remember all of those early operations that ultimately contributed to my overall experience, I now have a working thumb and my spine is great, so I would say that my experience has been amazing. At my last visit, Dr. Oishi even shared my most recent X-rays with me as a graduation gift! 
 
My favorite part of coming to Scottish Rite has always been the Rube Goldberg style art piece machine hanging in the lobby. It has and will continue to inspire me with creativity. Each and every time I look at it, I notice a new detail that I had not previously noticed.
 
This past year when the global pandemic first started, my twin sister and I learned how to sew. We started making masks and donated about 40 to a local hospice organization. A couple of weeks later, my mom was reading Rite Up and saw an article about the sewing ladies making and donating masks to Scottish Rite. This prompted us to make more to donate, this time for children. I reworked the pattern to make it fit better for a smaller face and I really love picking out fun fabric patterns that I think kids will enjoy. Cutting out all of the fabric is the hardest part, but I am so happy to be able to give back.  
 
Scottish Rite is a great organization and provides a wonderful opportunity for children to receive amazing health care. 

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