On Thursday, Mayor Kawakami proclaimed May 23, 2024, as Leila-Rose Coloma Day in the County of Kaua‘i. We honor Leila and her ‘ohana for all they have been through and we look forward to seeing Leila thrive in her bright future ahead. Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women and Children is Hawai‘i’s local Children’s Miracle Network Hospital, and this year’s Champion is 7-year-old Leila-Rose Coloma of Moanalua. Through an emergency C-section, Leila was born in 2017 with Ebstein’s anomaly, a rare defect of the heart valves that made it difficult for oxygenated blood to circulate in her body. Additionally, Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome left her heart beating so rapidly that it could not effectively pump blood to all her organs. Even with a breathing tube, as an infant, Leila was not receiving enough oxygen. At five months old, Leila successfully endured a complex open-heart surgery. However, as she grew into an active toddler, her parents noticed that she would breathe heavily after run...