Helmet of Hope: A Family’s Faith, a Hospital’s Heart, and a Blessing from Pope Leo
El Paso, Texas — From the very beginning of his life, Giorgio Oravetz began his journey toward treatment at El Paso Children’s Hospital. Shortly after his birth, Giorgio was diagnosed with craniosynostosis, a condition that was not unfamiliar to the Oravetz family — his older brother had previously faced the same diagnosis.
Years earlier, while seeking the best possible care for their first son, the Oravetz family met the late Dr. David Jimenez, a world-renowned neurosurgeon known for his pioneering work in minimally invasive craniosynostosis surgery. Under Dr. Jimenez’s expert care, their older son underwent a successful procedure that set him on a healthy path forward.
Fast forward to 2025: when the family recognized the same condition in their younger son Giorgio, they knew exactly where to turn. Reaching out to El Paso Children’s Hospital, the Oravetz family found reassurance in the hospital’s legacy of excellence. A legacy that Dr. Jimenez established alongside his medical partners at El Paso Children’s Hospital, Dr. David Yates and Dr. Ziyad Makoshi.
Christopher and Celine Oravetz are from Denver, Colorado and say there was no hesitation to travel over 600 miles to El Paso, Texas to meet with the cranial and facial team.
“We had an inclination that our baby had cranio. When we found out that he likely did, I reached out to Dr. Yates. Dr. Jimenez operated on our first son, so we wanted to go straight back to his team, no question,” Christopher said.
El Paso Children’s Hospital is committed to helping children with cranial and facial differences. Over the past several years the hospital has provided life-saving services to children across the country and around the world.
On September 11, 2025, Dr. Yates and Dr. Makoshi along with the rest of the hospital’s craniosynostosis team performed a successful minimally invasive surgery on Giorgio who was just two months old at the time. He will continue receiving post-operative care at El Paso Children’s Hospital as he recovers and grows stronger each day.
Just one month after surgery Giorgio and his family traveled to Rome, Italy. While riding through St. Peter’s Square, Pope Leo saw Giorgio, held him and blessed him. The minimally invasive craniosynostosis surgery has given hundreds of children and families the opportunity to heal quickly and effectively so that they can continue on living their lives.
“In the first few days after surgery, we remained in El Paso to help Giorgio through the initial postoperative stages. On the third day, he gave us a huge smile on his face and we thought, ‘OK he is back to his normal self,” Christopher said.
Christopher says the interaction with Pope Leo was nothing short of a miracle, considering the events that led up to that moment. After planning a family trip to Europe with their five children, Christopher and Celine knew they wanted to spend time in Rome and attend the Papal audience in St. Peter’s Square to receive the Pope’s blessing.
However, after missing their opportunity to claim their tickets the night before, the family had to wait in line for nearly three hours with their children — including three-month-old Giorgio. When they finally reached the front, they were told the entrance had closed and that they needed to find another gate.
“Things did not work out the way we expected. We hoped to enter St. Peter’s Square early and stand against the edge of the road, ready to see Pope Leo pass by,” Christopher said.
Rushing across the square, they managed to find a gate where they were admitted just minutes before the Papal audience began. Though their spot was far from the center of St. Peter’s Square, Christopher noticed the Popemobile slowly moving closer to where they were standing.
Christopher looked over to his wife and asked if he should take Giorgio closer to try and be seen by the Pope.
“I lifted Giorgio up in the air so that someone could see him and would let me through. I locked eyes with the security personnel. He signaled for Giorgio to come over, and the rest of the crowd saw and helped me lift Giorgio up and over to the security person. It all just happened so fast,” said Christopher. “The next thing you know, Pope Leo is giving Giorgio a blessing. I walked back to my wife, who said, ‘Did that just happen?’ We couldn’t believe it.”
In awe of how the day had unfolded, the Oravetz family returned to Denver with full hearts and a deep sense of gratitude.
Today, baby Giorgio is growing stronger every day. He will continue wearing his helmet for about a year as he heals from surgery.
”Giorgio has been full of smiles and has been taking the helmet process so well,” said Christopher.
El Paso Children’s Hospital is proud to care for patients like Giorgio and is especially grateful to families like the Oravetz family for their continued trust in the hospital’s expertise, compassion, and commitment to the future health of children across the region and around the world.
