Melba Brown needed a reason to hope.
Her then 7-year-old daughter was in critical condition in an Atlanta hospital.
It was her fifth hospital stay, and Macy Ray Brown had suffered from the effects of a rare kidney disorder called nephrotic syndrome for six long and painful days.
Her kidneys were barely functioning, her eyes swollen shut. Macy Ray was drained from severe vomiting, and the fluid in her lungs and around her heart pushed her into respiratory distress. Her heart rate rose, and her cholesterol level soared to more than 700.
The sweet South Georgia girl, who loves duck hunting with her daddy almost as much as Auburn football, was in misery.