This was obviously my first encounter with sudden cardiac death, not just in the family, but in my entire life. We always say Caleb’s death is saving his sister’s life, as we found out later on that his sister has the same genetic heart condition he had. We hope that his death can save even more lives, as people are made aware of what causes sudden cardiac death, and how they can get preventive testing. You can also play a part in saving a life if you are CPR trained. Never say never. Even though I pray that NO ONE will ever have to experience what we did, I do think it is wise to be informed and to be prepared to help when needed.
October 6, 2020
My husband wrote about October 6, 2020, in his book, “I love you, Little Mister”. It is a morning that is forever etched in our memories, but not in a good way. This is my account.
I woke up to the song “Reckless Love” playing on our Alexa machine. This was the ‘alarm clock’ that we have been using for a few weeks now, since school started at the end of August for me and the 3 kids. Caleb was in 8th grade, Evan in 6th, and Anna was in 2nd grade. I was teaching high school at the kids’ school.
Cameron went down to make sure the boys were awake and having breakfast after waking up Anna. Evan was there, but Caleb wasn’t in his usual spot, which is on the living room couch reading his Bible. He had done that every single morning. He went to Caleb’s room and saw that Caleb was still in bed. He tried waking him up, and when there was no response, he shouted for me to come down.
“Delia! Come down!”
I could hear the desperate urgency in his voice and ran down immediately. (Caleb’s room was one level below ours.) I was imagining Caleb must have gotten sick and thrown up all over the floor. It was much worse…
“I can’t wake him up! He’s not waking up! Caleb! Caleb, wake up!” I don’t think I have ever heard such desperation in Cameron’s voice. Such helplessness.
I tried shaking Caleb and asking him to wake up. Cameron remembers the desperation and despair in my voice, while I remember his. He didn’t wake up.
“Call 911. Call 911.” Cam pleaded.
“You call 911. I know CPR, so I can help him.” I really didn’t think I could have called 911.
We did what the dispatcher told us to and turned him around. You could tell it had been a while from the color on his face. I won’t go into descriptive details here. I know not everyone can take it.
“Should I start CPR?” I asked.
“The police are already in your driveway. Is the door open? Can you let them in?”
The rest of the morning, and day, went by in a blur. But it was a morning we would never forget – the worst morning of our lives.
For Caleb, he probably closed his eyes to go to sleep, excited about it being his birthday in 2 months’ time, and opened his eyes to see Jesus or His angels coming to take him home to heaven. We know we will see him again even though right now it feels like a very long time to wait.
DSP & ALVC – The Silent Killer
The disease that took Caleb’s life is called ALVC – Arrhythmogenic Left Ventricular Cardiomyopathy
Should I send my child for testing?
There are ways to get your child’s heart screened, and you may want to do so, especially if they are actively participating in sports.
Please get CPR certified!
One thing I would ask anyone to do, is to get CPR certified. You will also learn to use an AED and it can mean the difference between life and death for someone you may end up helping.
Caleb Walcott 