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Out Came the Sun
One Family’s Triumph Over a Rare Disease
Judith Scott
Six years into their marriage, Judith Scott and her husband Greg
decided to take the next step in becoming a family: having a child. At
first unsuccessful, they are blessed with the birth of a beautiful girl,
Emily. The joy of having their first child is short lived, however;
after just a few months, following numerous trips in and out of the
hospital, Emily is diagnosed with the rare and disabling disease,
Partial Trisomy 13. Doctors diagnose her as having severe learning
disabilities, lacking the capacity to walk, to talk, and to read.
From this tragedy unfolds the astonishing and life-altering journey
of Out Came the Sun. Emily encounters much hardship as she courageously
struggles to learn life’s simplest tasks, years after her peers have
done. Judith desperately searches for acceptance and a sense of control
of life’s many twists and turns, instead finding escape only in extreme
physical exertion, marathon running. Simultaneously, Greg and Judith
must deal with the enormous strains on their marriage, which nearly
comes apart at the seams.
But when Emily starts exceeding doctors’ expectations with flying
colors, Judith realizes she too can overcome adversity, by opening her
life to more love, and more children. This beautiful, spellbinding
memoir demonstrates the extraordinary fortitude to take misfortune and
valiantly turn it into triumph. |
11-20-08
 Emily
Katharine Scott was born on October 5, 1996, in Howard County, Maryland. We
currently live in Ellicott City, Maryland. At 3 months of age, Emily was
diagnosed with Partial Trisomy 13, specifically a duplication and inversion
of genetic material on her 13th chromosome. She has had heart surgery
(repair of Tetrology of Fallot), as well as kidney and abdominal surgery.
She also has a seizure disorder that is mostly controlled well with
medication. Her development is very delayed in all ways, from gross motor to
fine motor to speech. Emily uses a Vantage, an assistive communication
device, to talk as her expressive language is unintelligible. Emily attends
a regular elementary school, where she is enrolled in an ALS class (Academic
Life Skills). She is included in the regular curriculum as much as possible,
although this amount decreases as she gets older. Emily is currently a 6th
grader and has a younger sister Lauren (5 1/2) and a brother Evan (2).
Emily's story, and that of her family, is chronicled in the memoir Out Came
the Sun: A Family's Triumph Over a Rare Genetic Syndrome, published by
Academy Chicago Publishers in November 2008. The book is available at major
booksellers and also online at Amazon, Borders, and Barnes and Noble. The
memoir follows the Scott family from Emily's diagnosis as an infant, through
her young childhood. It's the love story of a mother who learns to love and
accept, despite struggle. It is also the story of a family and its love for
one another.
Thank you for including us on your site and for your interest in the book!!
Please contact me with any questions.
Judith Scott
Greg and Judith Scott
gandjscott@comcast.net
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