From 'Death's Door' to 'Completely Normal'

This is a rush transcript from "On the Record," June 18, 2009. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: You are going to absolutely love this. It has been three years since our colleague Catherine Herridge saved her then six-month old son Peter's life by giving him a part of her liver.

Well, today, Catherine and her two sons to see how the family is doing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAN SUSTEREN: So Peter, what's up? Are you good?

CATHERINE HERRIDGE, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Can you say "Hi"?

PETER: Hi.

VAN SUSTEREN: That's all?

HERRIDGE: He's pretty busy.

VAN SUSTEREN: What are you eating? Popcorn?

(Inaudible)

HERRIDGE: Go get a pot. Bring the pot back.

VAN SUSTEREN: Three years it's been, hasn't it?

HERRIDGE: Yes, three years.

VAN SUSTEREN: He looks, quote, "normal." I do not know what other word to use.

HERRIDGE: He looks, it's funny because I was out not that long ago at school with Jamie, and while the mother said to me "Which one of your children had the operation?" And I thought, you would just never know. In fact, I always say Peter looks the best of anyone in our entire family after the whole experience.

VAN SUSTEREN: I can't even imagine sort of the broader pressure on the family. You and J.D. had not been married that long. You had your half year old son and you did not want to short-sheet him with all the attention on the sick child.

The situation is not unique. Families with very sick children go through hell.

HERRIDGE: It's a really, you know, I think when you have got a child that is sick, and you have other children, the other child always gets the short end of the stick, because, at some point, you have to just decide --

Oh, you have got a blanket for her? That is very nice.

(CROSSTALK)

You know, for the child that as well, you just have to make a decision that you're going to make sure the other child lives, whatever it is going to take. And sometimes, I look at Jamie and I think, I feel bad that whole year was like that.

But he's really come through, and I think --

VAN SUSTEREN: Good for Jamie. Where is J.D.?

HERRIDGE: Jamie?

VAN SUSTEREN: So Jamie, where is your father? Where is your dad?

JAMIE: Afghanistan.

HERRIDGE: Where in Afghanistan?

JAMIE: Kandahar.

HERRIDGE: And what is he doing in Kandahar?

JAMIE: Building.

HERRIDGE: Building what?

JAMIE: Building a forward operating base.

HERRIDGE: And when is he coming back?

JAMIE: The month before my birthday.

VAN SUSTEREN: How old are you going to be on your birthday?

JAMIE: Five.

VAN SUSTEREN: Do you get to talk to your father ever, or email him or anything?

JAMIE: E-mail and talk.

HERRIDGE: Did you send him a card for Father's Day?

JAMIE: Yes.

HERRIDGE: What did you say in the card? Do you remember? You said, "I hope you come home safe, daddy."

VAN SUSTEREN: He was so yellow. But I will never forget how sweet those doctors were, and the nurse at the hospital.

HERRIDGE: What you don't realize is that, you know, when you have a crisis like that, it really takes hundreds of people to get you through it. I mean, hundreds of people. The doctors and nurses, the people you deal with primarily. But other people in the ICU, in the labs, and then the therapy afterwards. I look back on that theory, and I think, these people were total strangers to us, that they worked so hard to save him. And when they see him now -- I was talking to one of the doctors, and he said you have no idea how satisfying it is to see a kid like this go from being on death's door to being where he is today. He's going to have a completely normal life.

VAN SUSTEREN: I understand that one of the viewers of "On the Record," or on the GretaWire blogger, sent in a contribution recently.

HERRIDGE: I still when I at the airport or a place like that, sometimes people come up to me and they will introduce themselves and then they will say how is your son, because we saw Peter on your show.

And recently I got a letter from the hospital and a donation had been made in his name. And a look at the name, and was very familiar to me. And I hear from this woman -- I heard from her since the surgery really. And I phone her up. And I just said I want to thank you for making -- I could feel her almost fall off the chair. I said I'd been meaning to write but I have been really busy, so I wanted to call. And she knows him from your show. That really says a lot about the people who watch her show.

VAN SUSTEREN: We should name the hospital.

HERRIDGE: The Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh.

VAN SUSTEREN: And they do transplants all of the time.

HERRIDGE: Yes. It is very routine for them. But of course, when you have it, it is not routine to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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