On Christmas Eve, Cedarien Rolle was at a party in Exuma when a horrible tragedy changed his life forever.

Cedarien, who just turned 20 on February 14, was shot multiple times. Two of his friends were also shot.

Cedarien was quickly airlifted to Nassau – his condition critical.

“The doctor said he didn’t know if my son would live,” Kevin recalls. “When I was walking out of the hospital, I was crying, and I remember the hospital staff called me back in. They said Cedarien woke up. And he was calling my name.”

But Cedarien was nowhere near out of the woods. In addition to his severe, life-threatening injuries, he had lost his eyesight completely due to a bullet that passed through his head.

With his condition critical, he was next airlifted to Florida, and has since spent several months in hospital. Kevin says he has received seven surgeries, with one session lasting over 13 hours.

Today, Cedarien has been released from hospital to live with Kevin’s other son in Fort Lauderdale. He had to learn how to walk again. He still hasn’t regained his eyesight, but the doctors remain hopeful.

Kevin says the road ahead for Cedarian will be long and hard. A doctor visits the home twice a week, along with additional visits from physiotherapists. He is also routinely driven to Miami for hospital visits.

This tragedy was made even worse when, just a few days after the shooting, Kevin’s mother passed on New Year’s Day.

Suffice it to say, Kevin and his family have been through immense pain in recent months. Meanwhile, financially, Kevin has exhausted his savings, taken out loans and continues to struggle with medical bills.

Kevin says the family paid $10,000 for Cedarian to be airlifted to Nassau, and a further $20,000 to be then sent to Florida. Fortunately, some of these initial costs were covered by a friend of the Rolle family. Since then, Kevin estimates the family has spent $100,000 + on surgeries and hospital visits, with more bills every day.

“Sometimes, I think too much about it,” he says. “That’s why I keep working, to take my mind off of it. It has been a lot of damage for me.”

Anyone who knows Kevin, knows he is a wonderful human being. Kevin’s good nature, hard work and passion for Exuma have shined through for so many visitors and homeowners on island. He has helped so many people. Now it is our turn.

Now is our opportunity to help Kevin and his family in their time of need. Please consider giving to this campaign, with all proceeds going towards Cedarien’s medical treatment.

Thank you.