Pam Surano Maloney kept “the Steel City” informed and entertained for four years at CBS affiliate KDKA-TV, until she felt a deeper calling that she could not ignore.
“I knew I was missing something,” Pam said. “I was feeling called to a deeper level with Christ, and I was aware that I was walking with him, but he was alongside of me and not inside of me,” she added.
Pam did not make this decision lightly. She said the station felt like family, but ultimately, the decision to depart became the best choice for her and her family.
Since stepping away from the news desk in 2020, Pam found herself needing to rely on her faith more than she ever had before.
Just before Pam left the station, her daughter, Mary, experienced a traumatic trampoline accident that resulted in paralysis from the chest down.
It wasn’t long until Pam realized her family needed a miracle.
“I knew if my soul was in need of Him, Mary's soul was in need of Him,” Pam said.
Pam hit the ground running working alongside Mary's school friends to create Miracles For Mary, a non-profit established to support Mary’s recovery efforts and medical equipment needs. Pam also discovered equipment and devices that have now been brought to a local hospital for Mary and others to use. The ExoSkelton device, made by a Bionics company, was brought to Pittsburgh which is now a FDA-approved device for those who have had strokes and spinal cord injuries.
Throughout the years, Pam and Mary started to notice that miracles were taking place. Shortly after Mary’s trampoline incident, she was also involved in a severe car accident with her two brothers. An accident that no one would have expected to walk away from.
“Mary was trapped inside a car upside down and it was on fire,” Pam said.
Even with back-to-back tragedies, Pam instilled in Mary to keep faith that God would heal their family—physically and spiritually.
Pam says God spoke to her when she was praying in church after Mary's accident. She recounted hearing the word “gratitude” so clearly. She wrestled with what that meant and realized it was a journey of faith where all things were not revealed to her immediately, but in time.
“We decided we were just going to take out all the weapons of warfare, bring on all the prayer, all the scripture, all the declarations, and just truly press into the Holy Spirit and really believe in faith over fear,” Pam said.
Four years later, the power of prayer and miracles have been flourishing in the Maloney family. With the help of funds raised from Miracles for Mary, Mary is learning how to walk on her own again.
“I just got my license!” Mary said. Although Mary cannot operate a vehicle on her own, she drives by using a car adapted with hand controls.
Mary keeps her spirits up while jamming out to artists like Lauren Daigle and Cory Asbury as she gets ready in the morning, before she heads out to finish her senior year of high school.
“It helps you separate the stress of the world from how good God is. That's something I keep at the front of my mind, even if it's a stressful day,” Mary added.
Mary says her mom has poured faith and guidance into her. From practicing gratitude to keeping the faith, Mary knows her strength comes from the example her mother has set.
Pam has walked alongside Mary during the past four years never leaving her daughter’s side.
“My mom could be a physical therapist by now,” Mary joked.
Mary hopes to go into Biology and Health Sciences as she embarks on her college journey.
Pam still tells stories and uses her passion for journalism in other ways. She now serves in the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh by telling stories on God is moving in people’s lives all over the country.
Today, the mother-daughter duo is keeping their faith at the forefront. At every doctor’s visit to every college tour, they remember that God is a God of miracles.
“God brought people together to do his work and now we can continue to see those miracles unfold not only in Mary's life, but in other people's lives too.” Pam said.