Surf Nickerson

Hello there! We are friends of Surf Nickerson, aka "Surf Dog"! Surf is almost 12 years old and has spent the last year of his life dealing with some unbelievably hard things.

From age four to 11, Surf had epileptic seizures, controlled with medication and brain surgery in November 2021 which removed a seizure focal spot in his brain. In September 2022, Surf’s seizures became unresponsive to medication, and he was admitted to the local children’s hospital. Despite the doctors’ best efforts, the medication used to slow down the constant seizures took away Surf’s ability to swallow, walk, and stay awake. In November 2022, Surf was flown to Duke University Hospital’s Level Four Epilepsy Center. There two very sedating medications were administered and finally the seizures stopped in mid-December! Surf was sent home, heavily medicated, wheelchair-bound and unable to swallow. He would spend the next three weeks resting and building strength for more surgery in January 2023.

Surf returned to Duke University Hospital in January 2023 for more seizure mapping and surgery. After three weeks of mapping, Surf underwent another brain surgery on January 25, 2023. All immediate indications after surgery were encouraging, he was talking, smiling and moving. Tragically, the morning after surgery, Surf suffered an ischemic stroke and lost all function of his left side. In-patient physical, occupational, and speech therapies were immediately begun and two weeks later, Surf was transferred to a pediatric in-patient rehabilitation facility. For seven weeks, Surf had PT, OT and ST six days a week and continued to heal, recover, and build his strength.

Surf returned home the end of March 2023, 6 months after his admission to the children’s hospital. Surf’s physical, occupational, and speech therapies now continue in outpatient settings. He is able to walk short distances with assistance but remains in a wheelchair. Surf’s ability to swallow is improving but he still has a feeding tube.

Returning home has presented many new challenges, and the ability to address three specific, urgent needs would make Surf’s life safer and happier. First, the walkway to his home’s front door is narrow and uneven, making it difficult to get Surf in and out of the house safely. Second, Surf’s second floor bedroom is inaccessible to him, as he is unable to manage stairs. And finally, the wheelchair Surf uses works very well on hard, flat surfaces, but his favorite place, the beach, is inaccessible to him.

Through this past year, Surf has continued smiling and God has been so good! We are trusting that Surf’s current needs of a wider walkway ($3,500), stairlift ($13,000) and all-terrain wheelchair ($2,500) will be met. We are asking if you would consider opening your heart to bless Surf and his family by generously assisting with these needs. What a wonderful way to be the hands and feet of Jesus for this lovely family. Thank you and God bless you!