On Thanksgiving Day, 3-year-old Nazir's family gathered at his home to celebrate the holiday, but an accident marred the occasion. While his mother, Denise, was in the kitchen preparing dinner, Nazir went upstairs to retrieve a phone for him to play games on, unaware that his older brother had irresponsibly left a loaded gun on the bed.

“In addition to Nazir and his two sisters, I had invited my oldest child over to dinner because he don’t live with me,” Denise recalls of that holiday. “When he arrived he went up to my room and left his coat on my bed that had a loaded weapon in it. I did not know he brought a gun into my home.”

Denise had sent her twin daughters and oldest son to the store to get some last-minute supplies for the dinner as she cooked in the kitchen awaiting more guests. Nazir was restless, so Denise told him to go to her room and get her phone so he could play some games on it.

Nazir made his way to her room and noticed something new that he hadn’t seen before: a gun. Nazir, a curious little boy, reached for the weapon, and in an instant, it discharged, the bullet striking him in the head. The chaos that ensued in the aftermath reshaped the family's life in unimaginable ways.

“When he grabbed it, he grabbed the trigger and the gun was already pointed towards him,” Denise recalls. “He grabbed the trigger and squeezed it and then it went off.”

At first Denise thought the loud bang came from outside, but when she called for her son to return downstairs and he didn’t respond, she became concerned and made her way upstairs.

Denise found him lying motionless upstairs, cradled him in her arms, and rushed him downstairs, her mind racing in panic.

“I carried him downstairs on the kitchen floor and I panicked so bad that I couldn’t even dial 911,” Denise recalls of the horrifying event. “So, I ran to my neighbor who was already coming out of her home. She got her phone and called the police, who came right away.”

Although help arrived quickly, the damage was already done.

Nazir's brain injury led to multiple challenges, leaving him unable to walk, talk, or communicate. The boy who once lit up the room when he ran around and played was now confined to a wheelchair, dependent on his mother for all aspects of his care.

To ease their burdens, Denise reached out to Holton's Heroes seeking assistance. The organization's representative, Eric, learned of Nazir's story and immediately recognized the family's need. Together, they explored potential solutions, from a temporary ramp to indoor seating options, to make Nazir's day-to-day life more comfortable.

Ultimately, they agreed new seating options was paramount to Nazir’s quality of life so Holton’s Heroes gifted Nazir two new seating options, a P-pod chair as well as an adaptive feeding chair with custom table.

Through the support of Holton's Heroes, Denise found renewed hope, but the challenges of raising a severely impaired child persisted. Nazir's story is a testament to the resilience of a mother and son in the face of tragedy, and their ongoing journey is one of courage, strength, and love.

We are only able to continue to help kids recovering from brain injuries with your personal support. Please consider making a tax-deductible gift directly to our foundation today. You can donate safely here.