Angel's Story
Meet 8 year old Angel!
In December 2020, we met a beautiful family, their son Angel, and his sisters, Haley and Kayley.
Angel was born with Esophageal Atresia and Down Syndrome. His family worked hard to get him the best care possible, and as he grew they were hopeful that surgery would provide him with more freedom and a dream that he would be able to eat by himself one day.
Sadly his family's dreams were crushed when Angels surgery to reconstruct his esophagus was not successful. Complications with the surgery meant that when Angel recovered from the surgery and began to eat, he was not able to keep any food down. Despite being a happy and playful little boy, his family was realizing that something was horribly wrong. Finally it was discovered that the food he was consuming was going directly into his lung. His body tried hard to reject the food, and he ended up in emergency surgery, losing oxygen to his brain, which caused anoxic brain damage.
To say this family has been through a lot, is so inadequate. We were thankful to have the opportunity to partner with Make a Wish South Florida to provide Angel and his family with a dream room. This is a space where they can spend time together as a family. It can be dangerous to move Angel around the home too much due to his fragile lungs.
Angel’s parents often spend the night in the room with him; sometimes he requires CPR and medication checks. We added a sofa that converts to a sofa bed for those long nights.
Our team designed a space that could keep Angel comfortable, in a new bed that is a perfect height for his parents to be able to monitor and support him. The cubbies in the bed store much of his medical equipment, machinery and medications, so that everything is accessible.
A soft rug, TV console, new TV and lighting were also added to the room. The family enjoys movie nights and wants Angel to be able to be there with them, and now they have a space where they can do just that.
Our amazing electrical company, Erwin Electric, was able to repair many of the electrical issues in the space. We added beautiful and functioning lighting, and updated the electrical outlets so that the family did not have to run extension cords from another room to power the equipment.
Angel has two sisters, Haley who is 10 and Kayley who is just 3.
Part of the Savvy Giving by Design mission is to also provide the siblings of these children a place for rest and relaxation as well. Thanks to the generosity of our local sponsors we were also able to transform the girls bedroom into a magical llama inspired sanctuary. Haley’s favorite part, having her own bed! The girls were sharing a bed previously and as anyone who has slept with a toddler in their bed knows, they are all arms and legs in the night!
Thanks to the Drapery Company (hyperlink to them please) we added black out shades for better sleep zones and beautiful decorative romans with pom poms that pair perfectly with llamas.
With Angel’s fragile state and COVID restrictions, Haley attends school via zoom and her family is proud of how she works to make good grades. We updated her learning space with a new desk, bright lighting, shelves and storage for all of her school supplies. Cute Ikea cubbies with natural baskets make toy storage for Kayley both adorable and accessible. (We added ‘aftermarket’ legs to jazz this piece up!).
Creating a restful space with the help of our #savvygivers and Make-A-Wish means these sweet sisters have a tranquil space to learn and grow. Angel’s room is able to bring this sweet family together, creating space and time for memories with him.
Photography by The Dashing Ginger