On July 22,
2006 Garrett and his mother came to visit us, as they did every
weekend. His Mother, my daughter, works at America West Airlines (Now
U.S. Airlines). That Saturday was rather uneventful, as we swam in
the pool, played with him, and did the things that we always did. At
six o’clock Garrett was tickling my feet. This he learned from
me. I would tickle him under the arm, and say tickle, tickle. It
meant very little to him until he tried it on his grandmother’s
foot. Adele just about jumped though the roof. Garrett thought that
he had done something terrible, until I reassured him that was the
intended result. After that we were both targets of his tickling,
with me being less ticklish than Adele. That night I pretended to be
tickled, and laughed as he tickled me, and he laughed at my laughing,
which only made me laugh at his laughing. By seven o’clock it
was time to put him in for the night. So we made him a drink, and put
him in for the night. At eight o’clock we could hear that he
was still awake, and we prepared another drink for him. Once again at
nine o’clock he was awake as we could tell, y listening to the
monitor. We went up to investigate, and found that he had upchucked.
We brought him downstairs, and cleaned him up. In the next few
minutes he upchucked a cuple more times. We kept him downstairs, with
us, to comfort him, while he was feeling ill. He grew tired and
lethargic, over the next few minutes, which we attributed to his
being sick. At nine thirty we called 911 as he was as limp as a rag
doll, and his eyes had rolled up into his head. The Paramedics came
and administer oxygen, and in IV into his limp body, and transported
him down the road to the hospital. I rode with him, and was alarmed
at one point when one of the paramedics stated that something was
wrong. By the time that we got to the hospital, he was in full
seizure. Doctors, nurses, and technicians worked on him, and
monitored all his functions, yet his small body was trembling
uncontrollably. For hours, we sat waiting to hear of his diagnosis,
and could not help bit over hear one nurse tell a gentleman ‘that
his injury was minor, and that they had a baby brought in, that was
not expected to live through the night’. We were dumbfounded!
“Could it be our Garrtett?” We Thought, but later we were
re reassured that that the nurse had not meant for us to hear it, and
that Garrett would be fine. Garrett remained at Banner Baywood until
about two am. Then he was airlifted to Banner Desert Samaritan
hospital, which has a pediatric Intensive care unit. At Banner Desert
Sam, they decided to put him into a medically induced coma, to
relieve the seizures. He remained in this coma for a week. When they
tried to revive him, he returned to his seizure activity, so they
returned him to his coma. There we waited for another few days and
they revived him to a level of consciousness, but he remained unaware
of all that surrounded him. All this time we remained unaware of the
actual cause of his affliction. We were terribly afraid that he might
have been stung by a scorpion, or bitten by a spider, in the room,
where he slept. This we did while the doctors tried to determine the
actual problem. As days turned to weeks, we looked for any possible
cause that may have caused the actual problem. One by one, each
possibility was exhausted. We had very little left to consider, and
the doctors, conferring amongst the doctors at Desert Sam, Phoenix
Children’s, and Saint Josephs, could come up with little more
than Viral Encephalitis. This is a term given to a viral condition
which affects the brain, but that can not be simply diagnosed. It is
little more than a catch all condition for ‘we don’t
know’, in my opinion. After another two weeks, it was decided
to medevac him to San Diego Balboa Medical Center. There he remained
for a week, until room opened up for him at San Diego Children’s
Hospital. He was In San Diego Children’s Hospital, until late
October. However, on September 11, 2006, his mother gave birth to his
brother Colin James Taylor. She returned to San Diego Children’s
Hospital with her new arrival in tow. There Garrett, his brother
Colin, and his Mother spent many days. Garret seemed to be improving.
We visited Garrett in Late October, and photographed him holding his
sippy cup. He did, however, have a lot of twitching. We were told
that this was due to his rebuilding of his neural networks, and that
he would be fine. He also had returned about five words of his
vocabulary, of which he used ‘thank you’ regularly to
thank the nurses who administered medications to him. We blew bubbles
for him, and he called out bubbles on our video. We were confident
that we had a long, but steady road ahead of us. We were also
confident that he could do it! He had done so many things before,
that we knew that he could overcome this small obstacle. Garrett, and
his parents, and his new baby brother, visited us for Thanksgiving,
and at that time he was far less able. He was now only able to move
his wrist voluntarily. The rest of him remained limp, and
unresponsive. I placed the ball next to his wrist and let him hit it.
While it traveled only about ten inches, I repeated this many times,
as this was his limit of his play, and I was the main friend he had.
We were told, at this time, that his condition had changed due to an
increase in one of his medications. The increase was needed since he
had an increased need for Klonapin, a muscle relaxant, this also
relaxed all of him, and he was doing very little. We saw Garrett at
Christmas time. I had wrapped his gifts with a ‘rip-cord’
made of twine. He would only need to hold the twine rip-cord, as we
pulled the present away, to open it. This he was now unable to do,
without help. We loved the idea of seeing him, but hated his
deteriorating health. On January 27, 2007, Lauren brought Garrett to
see us again, for the weekend. When they arrived he did not look very
well, and we were told that he had a slight cold. His doctor had
thought that a trip to Phoenix, would be okay, and we always loved
seeing him. We spent the weekend with him, as his father was away
training, for the Navy. His Brother, Colin, was visiting his paternal
grandparents, in Spokane Washington. While we always enjoy our time,
with Garrett, he did not wish to eat as much as he had, in the past.
He had to have his food pureed, or be of the consistency of mashed
potatoes, but even these, were not appealing to him. I feed him, his
nutrition drinks, which are the child equivalent of formula for a
baby, via a syringe, and he had two of these drinks. One per day,
with any other food was his recommended allotment. On Monday, January
29, 2007, Garrett, and his mother, headed back to San Diego. He had
missed his Monday therapy, through the school system, but could get
back in time for his Tuesday Therapy at the Children’s
Hospital. We brought them to the airport at about noon. We called
Lauren later, and she said that Garrett was sitting by the window,
and was very happy watching the airplanes. They had a flight that
left at about two o’clock. We felt better that he was enjoying
himself. At about two thirty, we received a frantic call from Lauren.
“Garrett had another seizure, and I cannot find a pulse”
“The plane is making an emergency landing at Yuma” We
jumped into the car and prepared to head for Yuma, but got no further
than the gas station. We were summoned home as a call had come for
us. We returned home and found that the call was from a nurse at the
Yuma Medical Center. She suggested, very strongly, that we head there
immediately, as his condition was very bad. This we did. On route, we
made, and received many calls, to find out about his condition. Very
near to the beginning of our trip, however, we were informed that
Garrett had passed away. I filled many a kleenix with my tears during
the rest of that trip.
------------ Garrett Michael Taylor
February 28, 2004 - January 29, 2007 ------------
We
continued our trip to see our grandson, one last time, and to be with
Lauren. She was now alone, and feeling terrible. We arrived at about
six thirty, and found that her husband had been flown in, via
helicopter, by the Army, who had a chopper going to Yuma, and allowed
him to catch a ride. Their friends, Chris and Beth, also had arrived,
from San Diego, at about the same time. We were now all there to
console her. We were allowed to see Garrett’s body. I kissed
him on the forehead, and tried to say goodbye, but I think all that I
did was to make an emotional fool of myself, as I cried over the loss
of such a tiny, innocent child. I returned to the consolation room,
where Garrett’s parents were now, and immediately told them
that I would be honored to be considered to be a pall bearer for my
buddy. My statement was greeted with a hearty hug from each of them.
My buddy knew nothing of violence, hatred, or bigotry, he only knew
love, and therefore love was the only thing that he could give.
Dear Lauren and Mike: As a parent and a grandparent, my heartache
and tears are for the two of you. I am so incredibly sorry for your
loss. May the knowledge that your precious Angel Garrett is safe
within God's loving arms bring you peace... Karla Callahan (Queen
Creek, AZ)
There are no words to describe the ache in my
heart and to know that yours must be so much more. Thank you for
sharing Garrett with me. His time with us was short but truly the way
he touched so many lives was a miracle. Eileen Schwartz (Cheshire,
CT)
May the peace of God that goes beyond our understanding
meet all your needs. I continue to pray for you all during this time.
Lynn LaGreca (Groton, CT)
Lauren and Mike, We are so very
sorry for your loss. The only comfort we have is that Garrett is no
longer suffering. Please know that our thoughts and prayers are with
you. Chris & Meghan Hopkins
Our sympathy is this hard
journey, just know that God does things in misterious way but there
is a reason for everything. He was a angel that came to this world to
touch so many people like he did just know that through all this you
are not alone god is walking with you all through the way, He was so
special to have a family that care the way you did. Nancy Matos
(Worcester, MA)
I never met Garrett, but by his picture he
must have been one of God's special angels. I can only pray for all
of you and hope that you find healing with the joy of your memories
of Garrett. Jean Westenhofer (Scottsdale, AZ) Garrett our Little
Angel who bought us so much love and reached out your hand to all of
us.Peace be with you little one,Always remembered,You touched my life
and my heart on the Encephalitis Group, May you Momma and Daddy be
Comforted at this Time . Love, Deborah Deborah and Joe Lea (Fort
Erie, ON)
To My Dear Buddy, Your bringing happiness, to me,
is the very least that you did, for me. You saved my life, you
befriended me, and you made my life so much greater. Thank you can
never begin to say enough. I love you and will allways miss you! Rest
now in the Lord's peace. Mike McLaughlin (Mesa, AZ)
Lauren
and Michael, We've never met, yet I came to know of Garrett through
his Nana Adele's postings on the encephalitis website. I'm deeply
sorry for your family's loss, and I pray that the Lord give you
strength through this most difficult time. God Bless and Keep you-
Stephanie Smith Stephanie Smith (Athens, GA)
It broke my
heart when you lost your precious little Angel (I got to know Garret
through his nana on the E support group). I will pray for God to give
you strength to get through this most difficult time. God bless you!
Alex Alex Elias (Deerfield Beach, FL)
To all Garrett's
family, This news came as a shock to me. My deepest condolences to
all of you. Thanks Nana Adele for sharing Garrett's journey with the
Enceph2group. I have loved seeing Garrett through his nice pictures.
Since Adele joined the group, I always pray for Garrett's recovery
but I think God has other plans for him. I think one plan is to keep
him away from all the pain that encephalitis gives. I will keep
Garrett and his family in my prayers. God bless, May Mia Mom to
Lance, enceph survivor Aug 2003 from the Philippines May Mia (Pasig
City, Philippines)
I got to know Garrett and his brave
struggle through Nana Adele in the Enceph2 group. He is a loss to the
world, but a gain to the Angels in Heaven. God Bless little one.
Pauline And Lori (enceph survivor) Fulton (Glasgow)
I keep
thinking of the day we met at the Clinton outlets to let Margaret and
Landon meet and play with Garrett. I was joking with Lauren, that she
could disassemble and reassemble a rifle in less than 60 seconds, but
couldn't get the darned lid on that sippee cup!!! All three kids were
smiling and laughing. That is how I will remember Garrett...smiling
on the little carousel with Margaret and Landon. Know that I am
praying and thinking of all of you! Mary Hopkins (Groton, CT)
Thank
you for sharing Garrett with me through all of the pictures and the
Disneyland stories. I hope your hearts heal swiftly and you know and
remember nothing but the good times you were blessed with. Pat
Jennings (Chandler, AZ)
To All Garrett's Family, Our deepest
sympathy. Nana Adele shared Garrett's journey with the Encephalitis
Support Group. Although we never met Garrett, we knew him through
Nana Adele's eyes and heart. Our prayers are with you. Aloha, Nancy
and Daniel Nancy Brown (Kailua, HI)
An angel has entered the
house of the lord. Rest in peace Garrett. We love you. uncle Julius
aunt Mary and our family Julius Feniolo (Branford, CT)
We are
so blessed to have gotten to know Garrett through Adele. Thank you
for sharing in our journeys. Garrett will always have a special place
in our hearts. JeAnnah got sick around the same time as Garrett which
gave us a special connection to Garrett. We cannot tell you how
sorrowful we are for your loss. May God continue to comfort you in
this time. Tami and JeAnnah Powell (South Lyon, MI) Lauren, Michael,
Adele & Mike.... Words cannot express the sorrow in our hearts
for the loss of your beautiful, sweet Garrett, always with a smile on
his happy little face. Our prayers and thoughts are with you with
love. Judie & John Bennett (Wallingford, CT)
I will
always remember you as our little angel. I still can picture you
coming to help me up from my chair when I had a little trouble
getting up. What 2 year old has the compassion to do that? You were a
very special little boy and I will pray for you always. The only
compfort I have is that you are no longer suffering. You suffered
enough. Love, Great Grandma Rose Great Grandmother Rose Ferraro
(Mesa, AZ)
Michael and Lauren We were saddened to hear the
news about the death of your son Garrett. Our thoughts are with you
and your loved ones during this difficult time of loss. I know that
your great strength, family and friends will help you at this time of
loss. We are keeping you in our thoughts during this difficult time,
Joleen, Mike, Brennen & Ryan Westermeyer Joleen Westermeyer
(Anthem, AZ)
I knew Garrett through the pictures and
wonderful stories his Nana shared with me. Putting aside the fact
that Adele was a bit, no alot prejudice about her grandson lol. I
could see for myself he was a very special child. He always had a
beautiful smile. Now he is spreading his love and flashing that
beautiful smile in heaven. Healthy and pain free. My prayers are with
you all. Geri Geri Campbell (Avon, IN)
Our Lord Jesus now has
Garrett in His loving arms. My prayer is with the family. Lil,
encephalitis survivor (HSE 2002) Lil Kulhawick (Rocky Ford, CO)
Dearest Lauren and Mike There are no words to express how
sorry I am for your loss. It is so very sad and hard to lose a loved
one. I pray the Lord gives you peace and comfort during this time.
And that you know that Garrett is having a ball in heaven playing
with Jesus. He can run and play again isn't that awesome? And then at
night Jesus takes Garrett in his rccking chair and helps him get to
sleep. He is safe in the arms of Jesus right now. And you shall see
him again someday. So be strong sweetie and give Colin a really big
hug for me too okay? I love ya.. Hugs N Prayers Judy Lockwood (Moreno
Valley, CA)
Please accept our most sincere condolences. We
are still in shock as you are. Garrett will always be in our hearts.
Thank you for sharing this angel with us. Cindy and Devin (HSV @ 2
weeks) Cindy Bowker (Ashland City, TN)
Gina Michalowski (Mesa,
AZ)
CHARLES PATTI (HEWITT, TX)
i just want you to know
how sorry i am, and it broke my heart to hear about Garrett, your
very special son. God Bless you and know that you are in my thoughts
and prayers. Teresa and Meghan Kempton Mom of a encephalitis
child...... Teresa Kempton (Magalia, CA)
Many prayers are
being said for this sweet family. May God hold each one of you very
close and give you His peace. Nana Sally and Max from NCEPH2 Sally
Suiter (Pittsboro, IN)
My deepest condolences goes out to
your family. I lost my dad September16, 2006 from West Nile
Encephalitis. Your little guy gave it a good fight. May he rest in
heaven with all the angles. R
Our deepest sympathy, Pam and
Kim Gilligan (encephalitis parents group) Pam and Kim Gilligan
(Philadelphia, PA)
Our thoughts and prayers are with you and
your family. We are so sorry for your loss. (Nceph2 Group) Robin &
Cody Cohen (Chesapeake, VA)
God bless you and your family. He
is in heaven without that terrible illness that has taken so much
from our special chilren. Please know that the pictures and the story
that you shared with us about Garrett's journey with this illness
will always keep him in our thoughts and prayers. May you find peace
in time knowing that he is with our Lord. Rosa and Austin Jones (Las
Vegas, NV)
To OUR SWEET GARRETT, Nana misses you so much and I
cannot believe you are not going to come play with me or water my
plants for me or sing our MARY POPPINS song with me anymore . You
suffered so much after you got sick that I know it was best for you
to leave us but I didnt want to see you go. You touched so many lives
and I am so proud of the outpouring of love that your sweet little
life has generated on this earth. I am sure you will keep that love
going up in Heaven . I will visit your grave often and bring you
flowers from OUR garden and pray for you and look forward to seeing
you again and playing with you again one day. LOVE, NANA ADELE Nana
Adele McLaughlin (Mesa)
I cannot know your pain, but I do
know the joy that babies bring, so when your pain grows great, just
remember his happy days and wonderful smile. My Heart is with you!
Nancy Huber (solon, IA)
Our hearts and our thoughts are with
Garrett and his family at this very difficult time. Encephalitis
Global, Inc. Wendy Station (Vancouver, BC)
Be Still Be still
like the grass on a melancholy summer day Be still like desert shrub.
Be calm and you will hear your loved one speak, in the stillness, in
the calm, their love resounds. If you are still this promise I make,
you will hear the voice of your loved one helping you along your way.
Melissa McNutt (Priceviile)
To Garrett's family, May God
bless you and keep you in his loving arms during this very difficult
and painful time. Garrett was such a blessing to all of us in the
Nceph2 group. Our prayers and love are with you now and forever. Your
little man will live on forever in our hearts. Sincerely, Rona proud
mom of Wyatt Rona Compton (Los Angeles, CA)
Ruth Fell
(Rochester, NY)
Our condolences and prayers for your family
and this sweet baby. We lost our 10-year-old grandson on Memorial Day
last year and can understand the heartbreak you are going through.
God bless you and Garrett - perhaps he has found our Joshua and they
are playing together at the feet of the Lord. Bobbie Frink (Phoenix,
AZ)
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