Dear Friend of Fisher House So Cal,
Not all military medical emergencies occur on the battlefield. Some happen when and where least expected. Emergencies happen in barracks, while training, or traveling to and from base.
Such was the case for 20-year-old Lance Corporal Ty’Sean Davis, a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton, about to deploy with his unit. One morning last November, Ty’Sean felt lightheaded and left his barracks to get fresh air. His Marine Corps buddies saw him collapse and called 911.
Ty’Sean was rushed to the base hospital where he went into cardiac arrest. His health took a turn for the worse, and Ty’Sean was medevac’ed by helicopter to UC San Diego Jacob’s Medical Center in La Jolla, going into cardiac arrest two more times during transport.
At Jacob’s Medical Center, Ty’Sean was put on full life support and in a medically induced coma. Wasting no time, Ty’Sean’s command immediately contacted Ty’Sean’s mom Tonia, who lives in Norfolk, Virginia. She received the shocking news that her young son was seriously ill and she needed to be on the next flight to San Diego – her son’s situation was that precarious. “I had never been on an airplane before,” said Tonia, “nor had I ever been that far from home. But my son needed me, so I got on the plane and was at his bedside the next night.”
Now this is where Fisher House Southern California would normally come in. We would put Tonia up in our Camp Pendleton or San Diego Fisher House in a private room and make sure she had warm meals and transportation to and from the hospital, providing any additional assistance she might need along the way. But the doctors didn’t want her to be that far from her son.
Thanks to generous donors like you, we were able to help Tonia, putting her up in a hotel within walking distance of her son’s hospital room so she could be with her son daily. Tonia’s husband, Shawn, a Navy veteran, also flew in and together, they remained at Ty’Sean’s bedside.
The journey for the Davis Family would be long and arduous. Ty’Sean was in and out of the hospital following two open-heart procedures and the insertion of a pacemaker. During this very stressful time, Tonia and Shawn were able to help Ty’Sean with his appointments, medications, and therapy. In mid-March, after 4 ½ months of recuperation, Ty’Sean’s doctors cleared him to travel, and the entire family flew home together to Virginia.
We were able to provide lodging and food assistance for the Davis family for this entire period – something only made possible by you, and other generous donors to Fisher House So Cal.
Tonia reflected on her family’s experiences.
“In all that time, I didn’t have to worry about where we were going to sleep, or how we were going to get back and forth from the hotel to the hospital,” said Tonia. “Fisher House took care of everything, even well beyond the financial support. There’s no way we could afford to be here – to pay for a hotel and meals, but my son really needed me. I honestly feel that Ty’Sean wouldn’t have pulled through without our being here every day, giving him the strength and courage to fight on.”
Fisher House So Cal is honored that we have been able to expand our mission to support the families who cannot, for one reason or another, stay at one of our four southland Fisher Houses. And frankly, it is only through support from generous friends like you that has made that possible, as your financial support has enabled us to expand our mission so that all military families, in their time of medical emergency, can be close to their loved ones.
With that in mind, we respectfully ask you to make a gift, as generous as you can, so that together we can continue to provide the care our veteran and military families need, whether it’s directed to one of our four Fisher Houses in Southern California – Long Beach VA, Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton or Naval Medical Center San Diego – or for hotel lodging in the southland, including the Inland Empire. We’ll always provide our veteran and military families with a safe and comfortable place to stay – at no cost to them – for as long as needed – during times of medical crises.
Ty’Sean is now serving our country at Quantico, Virginia, and we’ll continue to follow his journey across the miles. We’re proud to have been able to support this young Marine and his family. Thanks for making your gift today, online at www.FisherHouseSoCal.org or by using the enclosed envelope. We’re truly grateful for your support!
Semper Fidelis,
Mike Frazier, USMC (Ret),
FHSC Military and Family Support Services
