Hayden Lives On: Family Relief Fund

Hi everyone,

My name is Adam Kingsley, and I was Hayden's uncle (I always will be).

On Monday, August 16th 2021, every member of our family received a call that no loved one ever wants to receive. We were instructed to arrive within the hour to say our goodbyes to Hayden.

Hayden had just been admitted to the PICU in Akron Children's Hospital after 45 minutes of rescue breaths and chest compressions, by his parents, neighbor (who is a nurse), and the emergency responders. The sporadic breaths he took while fighting the ventilator were just enough to give us hope that he might open his eyes or begin to recover, but as it turned out, God had bigger plans for Hayden. Medical staff performed a "body test" checking for electrical activity in his brain using an EEG machine. This test was performed a total of 3 times 12 hours apart.

During that time, waiting for those consecutive test results our family was blessed with time to say goodbye. With a little bit of time to process the tragedy we'd been dealt. Doctors said that 45 minutes should have left him with an hour before passing away. Leaving us with rushed incomplete goodbyes and a brutal blow to our family and friends. He held on and we held hope.

Hayden was declared brain dead on Wednesday, August 18th.

Hayden's curiosity was his biggest strength, he showed no fear, despite his developmental disabilities and the hardships he faced in this world. He loved to help others and always brought a smile to their face. He loved exploring and looking for insects, reptiles and other creatures. Hayden would often offer anyone around him a handful of LIVE pocket spiders! This past May Hayden and his sister, Alexa, chose to be baptized at First Christian Church (FCC) in North Canton, Ohio and invited Jesus Christ into their hearts. Hayden was set to graduate from Perry High School this spring, but instead he has graduated to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Hayden was very generous, kind, and compasionate toward everyone and everything around him. He didn't have a mean bone in his body.

Aaron and Casey, his parents, have chosen to follow his compassion and honor his memory by sharing his life in the greatest possible way. As a universal donor, Hayden will live on in countless lives and his little sister will have the opportunity to connect with all the people that Hayden saves.

As a family we would like to take a moment to thank the thousands of people that have been praying for Hayden and our family. Please continue to pray for the recovery of to organ recipiants and for the health and safety of the staff at Akron Childrens Hospital, who not only provided excelent care to Hayden in his final days, but to our family as well.

All funds raised will be put toward final arangments and the hospital bills.

Hayden loved to play board games. He loved beating everyone at family game nights. Our family had to cut back on playing Risk, because Hayden showed no mercy during that game.

Doing our best (this gap does not exist)

Hayden was an excellent big brother to the world's best little sister.

Hayden was not nearly as happy at the end of this ride as he was at the beginning.

This was Hayden's security snake. It stood guard while he slept and went everywhere with him for his first 8 years. This snake will remain as one of our best memories and be cherished forever by our family.

Happy Birthday Squishy! In many ways, Hayden was responsible for bringing our family together! He taught Aaron to be a father and he established Casey's career path in occupational therapy. Casey has gone on to help not only Hayden, but many other children.

Aaron was both Hayden's biggest fan and harshest critic. By pushing Hayden to do things the world said Hayden couldn't do Aaron shapped him into the man he was becoming.

This isn't goodbye, it's see you later.