Sioux Falls Shriners Commemorate SD Girl
The El Riad Shriners in Sioux Falls had a special guest at their meeting today. They were joined by 20-year-old Paige Stolsmark.
To the Shriners, she has a special place in their hearts, since she's someone they helped raise money for the majority of her life.
Your first time at a Shriners meeting, a few things may stick out.
The hats, for one...and the music.
...And probably the clowns.
However, that's all just part of it. Today the El Riad Shriners of Sioux Falls are meeting in part to commemorate the end of a lifetime of cleft lip and palate procedures for one 20-year old from South Dakota.
"Growing up, kids would ask me about it and I felt uncomfortable about it,” said Stolsmark.
And the amazing part, the Shriners paid every cent of her travels and procedures at the Shriner’s hospital in Chicago.
"As the surgeries went on and I was more confident about my looks and everything,” said Stolsmark.
It's all part of the Shriners mission: Raising money for the healthcare costs of sick and injured kids.
If you look at Paige today, you can hardly tell there was ever an issue.
"It's great to be finished with all my procedures like I'm confident in how I look and I'm so thankful for everything that they've done for me,” said Stolsmark.
Doctors recommended Paige and her family to the Shriners when they learned about her cleft lip and palate at 5 months old.
The Shriners have had such an impact on Paige and her family, that her father is actually joining today.
"It's just a great fraternal organization, lots of great people that spend their time away from their families,” said Rolland Stolsmark.
While she says she'll miss the doctors and the trips to Chicago for treatments, Paige says she's incredibly grateful, and says she hopes to someday give back to the organization that gave so much to her.
Paige is currently a sophomore at USD and is majoring in health science.
Someday she hopes to go back to the Shriner's hospital in Chicago and work with children.
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