written by Carolyn Turner, Jaxson’s mom

Jaxson Zane Turner was born on October 16, 2013.  From his birth, Jaxson suffered from severe reflux and aspiration issues.  At Jaxson’s doctor’s appointments, we brought it up with the pediatrician.  We were told it was nothing to worry about and that he would out grow it. My son wasn’t put any medication to help it.

On the morning of December 9, 2013, my husband and I woke up to our worse nightmare.  Our baby boy was not breathing… our precious son was lifeless. I was screaming “No, no, no!”

As I called 911, my husband performed infant CPR on Jaxson…When the paramedics arrived, they whisked him away right in front of our other three children to take him to the nearest hospital. They were successful in resuscitating Jaxson and transferred him to Saint Luke’s Children’s Hospital. He was on life support for six days,  failing each neurological tests they gave him… it broke my heart every time he would fail.

Driving back to the hospital one night after visiting my other three children for a few hours, I began thinking about some things the doctors had said.  They said Jaxson’s heart was good…why not donate it to another child in need? I didn’t want any other family to go through what we were and if we could help prevent it, it was something we should consider.

Without the doctors bringing it up, I knew that is what was right. I mentioned it to my husband and the doctors. My husband agreed and said that it was a wonderful idea and the doctors agreed with our wishes. On December 13th, my son passed away.  His death was declared official at 3:27 pm. They kept him on the vent for an extra day to run tests for his donation process, which gave us extra time with our precious baby. We did NILMDTS (Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep)  pictures, took hand and foot molds, and cherished every moment we had with Jaxson.

During the ultrasound of his heart, you can see Jaxson’s heart beating and it literally looked like an angel flapping its wings…we knew then that we made the right decision. Jaxson’s heart went to  save a little girl who needed a heart transplant.  He also saved a 24-year-old man.  Jaxson has the heart of a hero and will continue to live on through the gift of life.

Jaxson Zane Turner
10-16-2013 to 12-13-13

For more information on giving the gift of life, please visit Donate Life or OrganDonor.gov. Remember the Heart Hero who lives on because of Jaxson.  Remember Jaxson and his incredible gift.   Become an organ and tissue donor.