Tristan White's Medical Emergency Fund & Support

On May 27th, my 16-year-old son, Tristan White, was in a horrific accident where he sustained a traumatic brain injury. His injuries were so severe that the pressure in his brain became too high, and he had to have an emergency craniotomy to remove half of his skull. This life-saving surgery allowed his brain to have room to swell and heal. After the surgery, his doctors informed us that due to his lack of pupillary response, he might never wake up and at the very least, would never be the same Tristan we once knew.

Against all odds, Tristan made a miraculous recovery and was awake and talking within just a few weeks. He was joking around, being the fun-loving Tristan we always knew. Nonetheless, it was no small feat for Tristan; he required around-the-clock care in the Neurology ICU, where he stayed for an entire month. Because Tristan's recovery was progressing so smoothly, he was then transferred to a rehabilitation facility in Florence, SC.

After being at this facility for no more than two short days, Tristan's feeding tube became displaced and caused him to go into septic shock. He became extremely hypotensive as his blood pressure dropped to an unfathomable 98/13. As such, he had to be airlifted to the nearest hospital, where he was then diagnosed as being in hypoxic shock. It was from this incident that Tristan sustained more damage to over 3/4ths of his brain. These 3/4ths of his brain controlled Tristan's ability to move, walk, talk, eat or drink, and overall care for himself.

From the Florence hospital, Tristan was transferred to Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital. Here, we were informed that because the vital parts of his brain went without oxygen for too long, he might never regain the ability to do any of these tasks ever again. As the father and family of what was a healthy, bright, loving young man, we are indescribably devastated to hear of this prognosis. At the moment, we are doing everything we can to keep Tristan comfortable while we wait to see if there is anything further we can do to aid in his recovery. We are actively contacting and seeking out the advice and help of one of the best neurologists in the country, Dr. Nicholas Schiff at Weill Cornell Medical College.

While all of this is incredibly heart-breaking, the cost of Tristan's overall medical care is not lost on us. We are deeply burdened as a family and fear for our ability to support Tristan throughout this unthinkable situation. It is because of this that we are asking for your support and help as we deal with the day-to-day operations of Tristan's care. Any little contribution helps, as Tristan has acquired millions of dollars in medical bills over the course of the last 3 months he's been hospitalized in the ICU.

We are pleading with you as a family and as a father to please help support Tristan in any way you can. We understand and recognize that not everyone will be able to contribute, but to those of you that can we would be eternally grateful. Tristan was a vital part of this community and the light of so many people's lives. He deserves a fighting chance and that is why we come to you today asking to please help us take care of our son. We appreciate your consideration and any and all contributions you may be able to make.