Encinitas girl lived full life despite heart disease

By: MARGA KELLOGG - For the North County Times | Saturday, March 8, 2008 9:37 PM PST ∞

Parents urge more people to consider organ donation

ENCINITAS -- If Arianna Miller could still talk, her parents said last week, she would tell people she loved to sing and play the piano, that her dog Stitches made her laugh, and that if she could meet anyone in the world it would be Johnny Depp.

She would also wax nostalgic about a stuffed brown bear that sits on her neatly made bed, given to her by the Coronado Firefighters League after her first surgery at Children's Hospital. She was a month old at the time.

And she would say that if she had gotten the heart transplant she needed, she'd be alive today.

Arianna died Feb. 20 after a lifelong battle with congenital heart disease. She was 13.

By the time she was 3, she had had five surgeries. A final open-heart surgery in 2005 to replace a heart valve failed, and the only option left was a new heart.

On Thursday, her parents, Jeff and Anita Miller, said their eldest daughter never gave up, and that her death illustrates the need for more people to consider the merits of organ donation.

"We would like to bring this a little more into the light. Get people to talk about it," Jeff Miller said. "In Arianna's case, she probably would have had the heart of an adolescent. People don't ever like to think about their children dying, but the gift of life is something people should think about. You can take a tragedy and turn it into a blessing for someone else. It's a legacy."

Arianna was on the heart transplant list for more than eight months -- five of which were spent in the intensive care unit at UCLA Medical Center ---- before she died.

After being admitted to the intensive care unit in September 2007, Arianna never left.

"When she was put into UCLA, I told her that I wouldn't leave until she did," said Anita Miller, speaking through tears in the family's home on Casa Hermosa Court. "When I told (Arianna's younger sister) Delaney that Arianna had passed away, I told her I could go home because Arianna had gone home."

The family's home is filled with pictures. A plaque that speaks of the strength of faith hangs next to the front door, and a blanket featuring a giant likeness of Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow drapes the family room couch.

As part of the Make-a-Wish program, Arianna wished to meet Depp, but she wanted to wait until she was healthy, her mother said.

While she never got to meet the actor, the gregarious young girl with red hair and quick laughter accomplished a lot in her short life.

In addition to her love of cooking and music -- the Beach Boys were a favorite -- she loved to travel. Arianna visited places such as Black Butte Ranch in Oregon; Chicago; Wisconsin; San Francisco; and Hawaii.

At home, she excelled at school and was named the 2004-05 Student of the Year at Olivenhain Pioneer Elementary School.

She received certificates of merit for piano, had a part in the musical "Oklahoma!" at her elementary school and threw the first pitch at a Padres game in July 2007.

Arianna was also a poster child for "Jump for Heart," at Olivenhain Pioneer in 2006 and 2007 and sang with the North Coast Singers from 2002-05.

Jeff Miller said that it's important that the myths about organ donation be dispelled.

"We're Christian and very religious, so we know she's not suffering anymore, but at the same time we always felt Arianna had a bigger purpose here on Earth if she'd gotten a heart," he said. "Arianna wasn't focused on a lot of things like social status, fashion, material things. She was on her own schedule, wore what she wanted to wear and showed people a lot about life.

"A sticker was just as good for her as a $90 doll. She was always so thankful, despite the struggles."

In their daughter's memory, the Millers have created the Arianna Fund with the goal of forming a fledgling charity to help others with congenital heart disease. Donations may be made to San Diego County Credit Union, account 3263321, P.O. Box 269040, San Diego, CA 92196-9040.

"We want it to be something that Arianna would be proud of," Jeff Miller said.

To learn more:

www.donatelifecalifornia.org

www.unos.org

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