Help for Sammy’s continued recovery after brain injury.

Help for Sammy’s continued recovery after severe brain injury.

Our Story

Hello, we are the parents of a brave 13 year-old boy named Sammy. We are reaching out to you with heavy hearts and a desperate plea for help. Our sweet, gentle Sammy, who loved playing soccer and building intricate Lego projects, is now fighting to recover from a severe brain injury.

On July 15th our world was turned upside down. Sammy caught a stomach bug and, just as we thought he was recovering, he suddenly gasped, "Dad, I can't breathe." In an instant, he collapsed, stopped breathing, and went into cardiac arrest. Our daughters, aged 8 to 15, watched in distress as paramedics rushed and tried to revive him. They managed to keep a pulse after losing him 4 times and transferred him to St. Thomas Rutherford hospital. His injuries were too severe and he was almost immediately airlifted to Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital.

Deprived of oxygen, Sammy's brain suffered extensive damage and swelling. He was placed in an induced coma for two weeks to give his brain a chance to heal and allow the swelling to go down, also gave time to assess the brain damage. When his life support was removed, he miraculously began to breathe on his own. However, doctors warn that damage to parts of his brain means he may never walk or talk again. He remained in a vegetative like state, unresponsive, but we believed he could hear us, and his bodily functions were intact. We knew his brainstem was intact, the area responsible for those basic functions, but as shown on multiple MRIs there was damage to the majority of his brain. We continued to pray, holding onto the hope that with specialized care and rehabilitation, he might learn to walk and talk again. After 3.5 months at Vanderbilt children’s he finally was transferred to an inpatient pediatric rehab center in Atlanta. On November 4th he started his 5 week grueling rehabilitation. It was 7day a week / 8 hours a day of speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy. On December 10 Sammy started his 30 day, day rehab program where he was able to stay with us at Ronald McDonald house and we trained on how to care for him and our new normal.

Who Sammy Is

Sammy is not just a patient; he is our beloved son, a brother, and a friend. He has always been full of life, with a smile that could light up any room. He has a talent for building intricate Lego sets, often spending hours creating masterpieces that amazed us all. His passion for soccer saw him playing with his friends every chance he got, dreaming of maybe being a professional player, or firefighter or policeman. Sammy's laughter, his curiosity, and his boundless energy are deeply missed by his sisters, who look up to him as their hero. He also loved all creatures big and small, especially his two pet frogs and a tarantula spider, which he cared for deeply.

Our Urgent Need

Our family has faced an unimaginable challenge. We needed to be by Sammy's bedside, but we didnt have a car, and it costs $80 a day in Uber fees to visit him at Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville. Sammy's father is a stroke victim and cannot work, and I, his mother, the main breadwinner, have had to stop working to care for him. We were living in a hotel room with our three other children.

Doctors want to move Sammy to a pediatric rehab facility specializing in brain injuries in Atlanta as soon as possible to give him a chance at recovery. The costs are exorbitant. We need to cover extensive medical care, ongoing rehab, moving costs for our family, and loss of income as I need to be by his side as a full-time carer.

Thanks to the love and support we got through all of that!

How You Can Help now

Thanks to all the support early on we were able to be by Sammy’s side while he was at Vanderbilt and made the move to Atlanta. We were so lucky to be able to stay at Ronald McDonald house for the 2 months in Atlanta, but that was unfortunately only for 4 of us due to limited space. So, we had to also pay for a room for some of us. Sammy is almost ready to finally come home. He has made remarkable progress, but will require a lifetime of care! We desperately need your help to give Sammy all the means to continue his recovery and care. We need to move into a specialized apartment that is accessible for wheelchairs. Sammy needs specialized equipment such as custom walker, bike, shower chair, leg splints. We will continue to have to travel several times a week to Nashville for Sammy’s long term therapies. We need approximately $10,000 now for everything he needs. With us having to go back to work when we are back in TN, he will also need help and care. Please help to give our boy the best life he can possibly have after such a tragic emergency. His sisters miss him dearly - his cheeky taunts, his fun, his everything. We could never imagine a world so bleak and are hopeful that with time, our son can have some kind of life again. He is getting there.

Our Community's Role

Your support means the world to us. Every donation, every share of our story, brings us one step closer to being able to give Sammy the care he needs. The trauma and pain we have felt is overwhelming, but we hold on to hope for Sammy's continued recovery. We believe in the power of community and know that with your help, we can overcome this unimaginable challenge.

Updates and Gratitude

We will provide regular updates on Sammy's progress, our family's situation, and how the funds are being used. Your support gives us hope and reminds us that we are not alone in this journey. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your kindness and generosity. Any contribution, no matter how small, will make a difference. Please help our little boy.

Sammy’s recovery started soon after his emergency. Even on a ventilator and unresponsive his therapy teams gave movement to his body so his muscles didn’t “forget”. After he opened his eyes , that was his first means of communication blinking to yes or no questions. We could see for the first time he was understanding us. He started ever so slightly moving his hands and legs on his own. The damage is more severe on his left side. Everyday he was getting stronger and moving more. He started making sounds and vocalizing. To actually speaking. It was amazing to hear his voice again. Not quite the same…but still there. His personality is still there and he’s still our Sammy. Things are definitely different. He has trouble finding his words a lot, he has short term memory issues, needs help with most daily tasks; eating, dressing, showers, etc, but he’s getting more independent all the time. He’s getting stronger too. He can stand with his leg splints and walker. Most of the day he is still in his wheelchair though. It took Sammy awhile to eat solid food again, but he is finally there. He still does have his gtube though for hydration. Sammy has an ileostomy bag because his colon quit functioning from the brain injury.

Please help us give Sammy the chance he deserves to continue in his recovery.

With gratitude,

Janette and Adam, Sammy's parents.

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UPDATE: Aug 12

Sammy is still in Vanderbilt and waiting for his feeding tube to be replaced with a stomach peg (percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy) so he can get his nutrition directly through his stomach. He needs this procedure done before he can be moved.

On another note, good news regarding his awareness. His nanna from Australia called via Facetime a couple of days ago to sing Happy Birthday to Sammy (he has turned 13). He seemed to respond to her, blinked and even gave a tiny smile! So he does have some degree of awareness, even though he can't speak.