Meet Taytem Creator of Hope4Tayt
Taytem is a self-taught artist who has used her inner beauty to beautify all around her. She was born in 2001 being just 3 pounds, nearly full-term at birth, with Primordial Dwarfism. Due to complications during delivery, she subsequently had to go through a series of 45 plus surgeries to repair her throat and vocal cords. Not only is her condition very rare, her road has not been easy, although you would never know it, nor would she say so.
Early Life & Challenges
Due to complications during delivery, she subsequently had to go through a series of 45 plus surgeries to repair her throat and vocal cords. Not only is her condition very rare, her road has not been easy, although you would never know it, nor would she say so.
Family Challenges & Loss
In 2007, her Dad, Colin James Barth, was diagnosed with stage four cancer and told he had two weeks to live. At the time, she had three other siblings, all under the age of 10 with the youngest being just six months. He battled pancreatic cancer valiantly for 16 months before passing, which was another tough loss for Tayt and her family, she was the absolute apple of his eye.
A True Survivor in All Sense
When she was 13, she was diagnosed with Dermatofibrosarcoma Protuberans, a rare locally aggressive malignant cutaneous soft-tissue sarcoma, equally as rare as Primordial Dwarfism, for which the only hope at survival is removal of the cancer. She went through a series of six surgeries to clear the margins and then having her legs skin grafted to cover the right side of her torso where skin, muscle, and bone had to be removed. Once again, she not only beat the odds, she beat them with a tenacity that was truly miraculous and awe-inspiring.
Sharing Her Gifts With the World
Tayt is now 22, lives with her mom, grandmother, and five siblings in South Carolina and finds pleasure in drawing, making jewelry, painting, graphic novel images, and all things creative. She also loves to do special projects to make people smile, and wants and asks for nothing in return.