Meet Camille

Apr 17, 2026

Philanthropy

Camille’s Story

Meet Camille, a patient of Shriners Children’s St. Louis. Camille was diagnosed with tibial hemimelia, a rare condition that doctors said might require leg amputation. When Camille came to Shriners Children’s St. Louis, her care team reassured her parents that there was a positive path forward, without amputation. Since then, Camille has undergone a series of limb-lengthening procedures to preserve her mobility and her future. Today, Camille is thriving, supported by the compassionate physicians, nurses and rehabilitation therapists at Shriners Children's who have cared for her since infancy, and recently performed the role of Clara in The Nutcracker, a joyful reminder of what is possible.

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[Shriner's Children's logo; Shantay, Camille & Bryan, Shriners Children's St. Louis]

Shantay:

Camille's journey started when she was two weeks old when we arrived at Shriner Street's hospital.

Bryan:

Camille was diagnosed with tibia hemimelia.

Shantay:

The possibility was that she would have to get her left leg amputated and there was some talk about that, but Dr. Schinaker told us to have the wait and see approach, to see how her leg was developed. And he had a MRI done on her left leg. It was the best day of our life. Dr. Gordon was in the middle of surgery and Dr. Schinaker literally ran up to the OR and told Dr. Gordon Camille is a candidate for leg lengthening surgery. So after hearing that news, our lives changed immediately. From the darkness, we just started seeing all the possibilities and of Camille being able to walk on her own two feet.

Bryan:

Dr. Schinaker is a lifesaver. He gave us hope that we did not have. I honestly did not have. I didn't know what to expect. Just seeing the actions of him literally leaving us in the room and him going to talk to another doctor and tell us that he could help to fix. That was God. That was amazing. It truly was.

Camille:

I do ballet and the reason why I like it is because I like to do shows and I played Clara at the Nutcracker.

Bryan:

It's an unspeakable joy to see her performing ballet. Something that I never imagined. Me and my wife, we talk about it all the time, but just seeing her perform and has the lead in something. And her face, she's joyous. She's expressing joy just like any other child. That is the best feeling as a parent.

Shantay:

If we would have went to a different hospital, I'm pretty sure the insurance probably would have pushed for amputation from the very beginning when she was a young infant because they don't understand and they don't have the doctors that specialize in orthopedic care. So when we're able to tell people, "Hey, we're a part of Shriners and this is the journey that we're going on," it makes us feel proud that they cared enough to be able to perform the surgeries on Camille.

Camille's journey here has now been eight years. And in the beginning we didn't see the light at the end of the tunnel, but now we see the endless possibilities with all the things that she's able to do because of all the doctors and the nurses and the teams at Shriners Children's Hospital.

[Shriners Children's logo]