It's been 10 years since Cynthia Haskins lost her daughter to bacterial meningitis, but the girl's spirit still lives in the hearts and minds of those who loved her.

"There's not a day that goes by that something doesn't remind me of her," Cynthia says. "I could write a book of all the signs I've gotten."

Pictures of Cara Petrini are displayed throughout the family's Pine Township home. The images mark milestones in the life of the 16-year-old who loved art, playing guitar and sailing on the Chesapeake Bay.

Cara was staying with her father, in Annapolis, Md., when she fell ill with a severe head-ache, stiff neck, fever and nausea. Thinking she had the flu, she retreated to her bedroom. Friends who visited her that evening said she was vomiting and couldn't lift her head off of the pillow, Haskins said.

At 7 a.m. the following day, Cara asked her dad to take her to the hospital. She was admitted as a non-emergency, but, in the waiting room, her condition worsened. She developed a rash and tremors. Doctors performed a spinal tap on the teenager --a procedure that involves inserting a needle into an area in the lower back where spinal fluid is readily accessible --and discovered she had bacterial meningitis, an infection that causes inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord.

Antibiotics were administered and she was transferred to Sinai Hospital, a larger medical facility in Baltimore. By noon, she was in a coma.

Cynthia, her husband, David Haskins, and the couple's 11-year-old daughter, Lauren, took a long, turbulence-filled flight to Maryland. Upon their arrival, they learned Cara was clinically brain dead.

The family kept a bedside vigil, praying for a miracle. The following morning, April 10, 1999, they turned off the ventilator and said goodbye.

In the decade since her daughter's death, Cynthia has sought to understand meningitis, which, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, usually is caused by a bacterial or viral infection. The latter is generally less severe.

Meningococcus bacteria in oral, nose and throat secretions can be spread only by direct contact, such as kissing or sharing food or a drink container.

The Haskins don't know how their daughter contracted the illness. While allergies may have weakened her immune system, neither immediate family members nor Cara's classmates at Annapolis Senior High School had meningitis, Haskins said. Although most people who are exposed to the disease never get sick, they can pass the bacteria on to others.

In Allegheny County, fewer than 10 cases a year are reported, usually in children, teenagers and college students. Symptoms include fever, chills, severe pain in the back of the head, stiff neck, sensitivity to light, a rash and rapid breathing. People who suspect they or their child has bacterial meningitis should seek immediate medical attention because early diagnosis and treatment is needed to reduce the risk of permanent neurological or spinal damage.

Cara's doctors later told her parents that the teenager had a better chance of survival if she would've stepped out in front of a truck --that's how fast her condition deteriorated.

There are two vaccines available that can prevent four types of meningococcal disease, including two of the three strains most common in the United States. Lauren Haskins, now a 21-year-old college student, has been vaccinated.

As a aesthetician at Above All Grand Salon & Spa in Pine, Cynthia chats with a lot of people each day, including doctors and nurses. The statistics may not be staggering, but many of them have had experiences with meningitis. She asks other parents to be more vigilant in recognizing the symptoms and demanding the best care for their child.

"You go through life day-by-day and you think bad things will never happen," she says. "As a mother, as a parent, you never, ever think your children are going to precede you in death."

While the grief still lingers, Cynthia tries to channel her pain into something positive. She joined The Compassionate Friends, a support group for bereaved parents, and is actively involved at St. Richard Catholic Church in Richland.

She raised funds to send 20 children's Bibles --all dedicated to Cara --to a church-supported orphanage in Guatemala, and she is reaching out to American troops by shipping care packages overseas.

"Cara sure hasn't died in vain," Cynthia says, looking down at her daughter's picture. "I gave her life at birth; she gave me a new life in her death."

Meningitis information

For more information on bacterial meningitis, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Web site at www.cdc.gov/meningitis/bacterial.

On Saturday, April 25, the Confederation of Meningitis Organizations is sponsoring a World Meningitis Day to raise awareness and funds for the disease.

To learn more about the event, visit www.comoonline.org.