| Jack's Story It is not the length of life, but the depth of life. ~Ralph Waldo Emmerson Matt and Bethany Gillham established The Jack Ryan Gillham Foundation in memory of their son, Jack. Jack came into this world on July 6, 2007. It was known before his birth that he would face significant challenges. It was unknown just how great those challenges would be. In utero Jack was diagnosed with a birth defect called Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia. The odds of survival for CDH are 60/40. Despite the grim diagnosis Matt and Bethany continued to be hopeful. Immediately after his arrival Jack was taken to Arkansas Children’s Hospital, where he would spend his entire short life. When he was a few hours old he was placed on ECMO, lessening his chances of survival. However, after nine days and one surgery Jack came off of ECMO and began to improve. He faced one obstacle after another, but he continued to overcome them. When he was three and a half weeks old Jack had to be placed on dialysis due to dangerous levels of potassium in his system. His kidneys had ultimately failed and were unable to rid his tiny body of toxins. He would never come off of dialysis and it was determined after 5 weeks and 6 days that Jack had severe brain damage. He would never walk or talk or know his family. What a heart break this was and continues to be for the family of Jack. He put up a valiant fight. Always keeping such a sweet spirit about himself, despite what he endured over those six weeks. His parents chose to remove life support and on the day that he was six weeks old his fight ended. Matt and Bethany had decided that even if Jack came home they were going to help families in similar situations. The fact that Jack did not survive only fueled that fire. They wanted to make sure that Jack’s life had a greater purpose and that his memory will live on. The Jack Ryan Gillham Foundation works to make sure that others will benefit from his life. He is our hero! In the words of one of our dear friends, “He’s going to leave more of a mark on this world than half the people who live to be a hundred.” |
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