When Phil and Elisabeth Scott went into the hospital to give birth to their daughter Brianna, they hadn’t even purchased a bassinet to bring their daughter home. Instead, the couple had been shopping for tiny coffins.
Brianna had received a prenatal diagnosis of Trisomy 18, and her parents had been told she likely wouldn’t live long after birth. Despite the painful news they received when Elisabeth was 20 weeks pregnant, she emphasized that they never considered aborting their preborn baby girl. “There was no question for Phil and I whether or not termination was on the table, because it wasn’t,” Elisabeth said in a recent Live Action video.
Remarkably, Brianna defied the odds. As Phil and Elisabeth shared in a previous Live Action News interview, she received immediate medical intervention following birth, including surgery from a doctor who had previously worked with Trisomy 18 babies.
“I can’t relive this without getting teary-eyed and choking up just because of how amazing God has been through this entire thing,” said Phil. “… The doctor came and he was excited to perform the surgery. He had performed the surgery on three other children with Trisomy 18. Two were successful and one was not, and unfortunately, all three of those children didn’t live to be more than a month. And so he was excited to try it again and to help one of these children to live.”
The surgery was a success, and Brianna was eventually able to go home with her parents and big sisters.
“Now she’s almost five years old, and she wasn’t expected to be here longer than a few days maybe. She just blossomed. She’s going to therapy and enjoying life with her sisters,” Elisabeth said.
When shared on the Live Action YouTube page, Brianna’s story sparked comments from viewers who were inspired by the message of love expressed by her parents.
Phil and Elisabeth said that Brianna’s life is full and beautiful, in part because of the love she receives from her family and caregivers. Their message is one of hopefulness, especially in a society that actively advocates for the killing of preborn children like Brianna.
“The world is surrounded with why it won’t work, and you need to know that it can,” Elisabeth said.
