A 9-year-old St. Lucie County girl expresses gratitude and shares her dream of becoming a flight nurse.
A 9-year-old St. Lucie County girl expresses gratitude and shares her dream of becoming a flight nurse.
A 9-year-old St. Lucie County girl expresses gratitude and shares her dream of becoming a flight nurse.
St. Lucie County first responders reunited with 9-year-old Hariann Brown, who made a full recovery after a traumatic dog attack on New Year’s Eve.
The incident occurred when the family’s puppy, stressed by fireworks, bit off a large portion of Hariann’s cheek.
Brittany Brown, Hariann’s mother, described the moment.
“And when he did, it wasn’t just a little nip. It was a tear and unfortunately, we had to call 911,” Brittany Brown said.
Hariann was airlifted to St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach for treatment, leaving her mother unable to accompany her on the helicopter.
“That’s something parents just aren’t used to. So, it’s definitely scary for me. But I was more worried about her. Thankfully, we had people like Sara and the rest of the team to take care of her, and she wasn’t very scared,” Brittany Brown said.
Sara Curtis, a flight nurse with St. Lucie Air Rescue, recalled comforting Hariann during the flight.
“Like always, I get in the back of the rescue, and I start talking to my patient because it is scary, and it can be a lot going on. And I misunderstood what Hariann had said, you know, I said, ‘What’s your name?’ And she said something, and I was like, ‘OK.’ And she’s like, ‘No, I said my name is Hariann.’ And it was great, she was just great. It’s scary, but she was awesome, and we got to take care of her,” Curtis said.
Hariann spent several days in the hospital and underwent plastic surgery to repair her cheek.
“The plastic surgeons were able to fix her up good, and she looks just as beautiful today as she did then,” Brittany Brown said.
On Saturday, Hariann enjoyed sitting in the same helicopter where she had once received care. The Brown family expressed their gratitude to the first responders by gifting them a leather fire hat.
“My firefighter for 32 years, and he was also an EMT, he was given or gifted that from a friend,” Brittany Brown said. “And it is one of the first leather fire helmets that were ever put into production and that were cleared for use in real-life situations. It’s a token of our appreciation, so it could be something that’s, you know, memorialized. We knew that the team that helped her would definitely appreciate it, as it’s something that pays homage to what they do every single day.”
Justin Walker, a St. Lucie County first responder, shared his thoughts on seeing Hariann after her recovery.
“She doesn’t seem to have any, like, fear of dogs, which was one of my concerns, especially considering that we have the therapy dog here today,” Walker said. “It’s good to see her smiling, happy, playing around with the dog, having no serious deficits from the call, and it just makes me happy to know that we did a good job and the patient outcome was beneficial for all involved.”
Hariann shared that she now dreams of becoming a flight nurse to help others, inspired by the care she received from Curtis and the team.
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