On Oct. 3, 2019, 7-year-old Sophie Taylor was recognized as the first ever Vanderbilt Champ of the Game during a matchup between the Nashville Predators and Minnesota Wild at Bridgestone Arena.

Sophie was recovering from heart transplant surgery at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at the time, and all of Smashville cheered her on when a video was played on FangVision during the game. Now, five years later, the Preds and Vanderbilt Health are welcoming Sophie back to Bridgestone Arena in person on Oct. 17 to celebrate the Champ of the Game five-year anniversary milestone.

For the past five seasons, the Preds have partnered with Vanderbilt Health to select a child receiving care at Monroe Carell to celebrate in-game with a video to honor their courage and for Smashville to show their support in the journey.

At birth, Sophie was diagnosed with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, a condition in which the left ventricle of her heart was underdeveloped, preventing oxygenated blood from being properly circulated throughout her body. The only way to address this condition was through a three-stage surgical procedure, performed in separate phases, to reroute blood flow. This approach allows the right side of the heart to take on the functions of both the right and left sides.

Before Tessa and her husband, Kevin, adopted Sophie at six months, Sophie had already undergone two of the three heart surgeries, one at three days old and another at five months. Once she had her third open heart surgery at age three, Sophie experienced complications due to the newly altered heart anatomy. This left the Taylor family with a difficult decision – undo the surgery that was just completed or proceed with a heart transplant.

After a long 18 months of playing the waiting game, on Sept. 17, Tessa got the call she was hoping for – Monroe Carell had a heart for Sophie.

Sophie was chosen for Champ of the Game a week after her surgery, and at the time, she was unable to remember how that moment felt.

“I’m ready for her to remember it this time,” Tessa said. “Because of her surgery, Sophie was fighting the medications. She was forced to sleep to give her body time to heal. When she woke up, she had dementia. It was a rough few days and she didn’t remember it.”

Tessa, on the other hand, remembers it like it was yesterday.

“Watching the videos of Smashville cheering Sophie on was touching,” she said. “Standing there while everyone was surrounding her and then hearing it, I started crying, and I’m not a crier.”

The Champ of The Game experience has become a heart-warming moment between the Nashville community and a family facing one challenge after another.

Tessa and Sophie repeatedly emphasized the importance of the support they received from Smashville, Vanderbilt Health, and their pulmonology department during the road to recovery and how much it meant to the Taylor family.

“Kudos to the Predators and Vanderbilt in general, for always trying to keep families included and interactive, because you’re meeting them not at your greatest times,” Tessa said. “Through the years, the Predators have always made sure to reach out to Sophie and include her in things. They have always been good to her through everything.”

Sophie, now 12 years old, resides in Hilham, Tennessee, and is surrounded by her 6-year-old brother Draven, along with her parents Tessa and Kevin. She is in the sixth grade and enjoys language arts classes. When she grows up, she wants to be a nail technician and is very excited to start babysitting.

“Thank you all, Vanderbilt and Predators, for all that you do for the children and their families,” Tessa said. “Events like this with the inclusion of the children and their families, help families to feel a little more ‘normal.’ So, thank you all again for remembering Sophie and including her.”