Urgent Support for Emeril and His Family

Emeril Stark is a dedicated student and proud member of Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity at Monmouth College. He hopes to graduate with a degree in Music Education and help share the joy that music has brought him with others. He performs in the Monmouth College color guard and with several of the choir/chorale groups on campus. He loves his cat Ivy and was looking forward to welcoming his little brother Canaan to campus next fall.

My name is Joleen Haslip. On Wednesday, April 16, 2025, I received the call no parent ever wants to get. My child Emeril was found unresponsive by Campus Safety at Monmouth College, in Monmouth, IL, nearly 4 hours from home. Details of what happened to Emeril leading up to this moment are not yet clear. What we do know is that Emeril is now in a medically induced coma at OSF St. Francis in Peoria, IL. I can say that the Monmouth City Police do not believe that there was foul play involved.

As a parent, I had a lot of doubts due to injuries Emeril sustained, but without evidence to the contrary, we are looking at what appears to be an accident.

Emeril has now been in a medically induced coma for 6 days, and while we are hopeful that we will soon be able to bring him to consciousness, we have no idea what that will look like. This could take days, weeks, or even months to get back to a sense of normalcy. Being several hours from home, we are currently staying in a hotel near the hospital, and while my work is understanding of my need for time, I will soon run out of vacation and sick leave. I am currently the only one working for our family while my husband, Travis, is awaiting back surgery in mid-May. We could use a little help and a lot of prayers in the coming weeks.