| Ian Troxell | Carol Carbone | Krista Harakal | Nicole Fort | Darryl Goode |
| Paul Scheuerle | Millie Stenhouse | Kurt Cortazzo | Olivia Sterner |

A Circle of Caregivers

It's rare for children to have strokes—they occur in about 3 out of every 100,000 children per year, according to the National Stroke Association, but Krista Harakal was one of those cases.

It affected her speech, making it difficult to clearly articulate the torrent of ideas that come spilling out of this adorable, now 15-year-old child.

Krista was in 7th grade when she began having fainting spells. It later turned out these were transient ischemic attacks, or what the American Heart Association describes as “"warning strokes." Later, a pediatric neurologist diagnosed Krista with Moyamoya, a progressive cerebrovascular disorder caused by blocked arteries at the base of the brain.

A week later, as Krista was waiting to have the first of two brain surgeries to restore the flow of blood, Krista had a stroke. She was rushed to Hershey Medical Center, where she was stabilized and spent more than a month.

After coming home, Krista began her therapy at Good Shepherd, and her family instantly expanded to include a circle of caregivers—physical, occupational and speech therapists, all who embraced her with kindness and compassion.

“"We were [at Good Shepherd] one time and I knew we'd made the right decision," says Valerie, Krista's mother.

Not only did Krista's team of therapists bring clinical expertise to the table, their hearts helped build relationships that pulled Krista and her entire family through the tangle of emotions common to stroke survivors and their loved ones.

“"I really feel like people care about me here," Krista says.

“"It's not just a job for them,”Valerie adds. "It's genuine. You can't fake that. I told her first speech therapist, Jeanie Metzger, ‘'you didn't just help Krista, you healed our whole family.'"

Krista, who last year was nominated for Pennsylvania's Stroke Survivor of the Year award, had always been interested in becoming a lawyer. Now, she also is considering occupational therapy as a career. She's back at Northampton Area High School full time taking honors classes in English and history, still serves on Student Council and talks about volunteering at Good Shepherd with her mother.