Help Eddie’s Mom Recover and Advocate

Co-organized

Tamara Smith and Alison McEntire are organizing this fundraiser.

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Hello! We are raising money to support Tammy who recently lost her son Eddie. He was 11 years old and suffered a traumatic brain injury when he was just 21 months, resulting in severe disabilities and a host of health issues. He was in and out of the hospital constantly, where he stayed for the entire last year and a half of his life. The injury resulted from Eddie being neglected by his caretaker while she was at work, and he drowned in a backyard pool. We want to raise money to lessen her stress so she can heal from the trauma of losing her only child. She had to put aside her full-time career to be there for him through the years, and for the last few months of his life, she barely left his side and could not work at all. She is really struggling dealing with the grief and depression following his death and she needs help right now getting back on her feet. Once on her feet she wants to start public and political advocacy programs for children like Eddie to raise awareness for drowning prevention and to fill the cracks she saw in the medical system to give these kids better lives. She has plans to start a nonprofit called “Hand-to-Hand” raising awareness about pool safety.

Please take the time to read this story to the end and look at the collection of pictures so you can fully understand the reason for doing this fundraiser. Thank you!

Eddie would have turned 12 on September 23. Tammy was a single mother with Eddie being her only child, and as she always said “we are a complete family of two”. As a result of his brain injury, he had severe disabilities and was unable to talk. Fully present and aware, able to see and hear others, he was limited in his physical interactions. He depended on a ventilator to breath at night and relied on feeding tubes for his nourishment and medications. Tammy had a beautiful relationship with her son. Eddie was beyond inspirational. He was a miracle and had strength and resilience and a vitality that touched upon the divine, overcoming so many obstacles put in his way. He touched a lot of people and, through various outlets, undoubtedly saved dozens of kids raising awareness for drowning prevention. When he died he ultimately chose to go on his own. He was tired and didn’t want to live this life anymore. Nothing directly caused his death. A large majority of kids like him die of pneumonia and he did not. His body just slowly started to shut down. And just how he chose to live, he chose to die. On his own terms, taking his last breath on his own, not having it taken from him.

Tammy is absolutely devastated and heartbroken. The love of her life and center of her world is gone. She is now a mother without a child. Eddie lived his last year and a half in Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles. Tammy had already moved in with him making his hospital room their home, but during his final few months Tammy did not work and did not leave his side. She completely depended on others for financial support to live, and had to borrow money for services, which she owes back. Since then she has continued to struggle on all levels and her financial burden and resulting stress has increased.

This fundraiser is twofold.

First, it is to help Tammy get through this dark time while she slowly picks herself up off the floor and is able to return to life and work and fully function to be self-sufficient again. Her life was completely devoted to Eddie taking care of him and managing his medical needs and she is lost without him.

Second, once Tammy is back on her feet, it is to raise money for her to take the torch that Eddie passed to her and continue to raise awareness about drowning prevention. She wants to start a nonprofit and create political platforms and lobby for changes that need to be made to fill the cracks she saw in the medical and home healthcare systems, which most kids like Eddie have fallen into and disappeared. She was the most fierce advocate for her son not allowing anyone to get in the way of obtaining what he needed, no matter how high up the chain they were. She was definitely a force to be reckoned with. She wants to prevent children from living this way and prevent their parents and families from going through what she had to, and what we all had to. She has the experience of a mother of one of these children who saw all that was lacking. And she has the toughness, strength, resilience and courage to get it done.

So please help Tammy live with less financial stress during this period of time so she can heal from and survive this trauma. And support her in creating a nonprofit and awareness programs to prevent drowning and traumatic brain injuries from happening to other children.

Thank you!!