Translate This Page To: Spanish German French Italian Portuguese Norwegian Brought to you From FreeTranslation.com Give a gift in honor of this child. Evan Evan Evan with brother and sister UPDATE: 8-06-04 EULOGY I remember saying Evan belonged to God; we just get to borrow him for a while. We knew we probably wouldn't have him until adulthood, but we weren't ready to let him go yet, particularly so suddenly. We expected that his death would be in the winter, that he would be in the hospital with pneumonia for a few days. Evan's name means youthful warrior, and that's what he was, battling for survival. It was difficult to see him in pain and having seizures, but he kept on breathing. After his diagnoses, he couldn't enjoy the most basic pleasure of tasting and eating food by mouth. His body wasn't working out. It limited what he could do and it appeared to have a lot of discomfort. So it was probably merciful for him to get to leave it quickly and not have to return to it. He was such a precious baby in a child's body. He gave everyone who met him a chance to love unconditionally, not based on what he could or couldn't do. And he was loved by many in his 3 years. We miss him and will miss him so much, but it will get easier with time. We can be thankful that Evan is free from pain now. In time, God can ease the sorrow in our hearts and leave warm memories there. Jeannie Sevier 8/5/04 UPDATE: 8-05-04 Visitation for Evan will be 6-8 pm Friday. His funeral will be 10 am on Sat. Both will be at Spring Hill Memorial Park and Funeral Home on Hwy 31, Spring Hill, TN. If you want to send something, the family prefers live plants or a dogwood tree to be planted in a memorial garden at Evan's home, or a memorial may be made to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital, but flowers are also fine. UPDATE: 8-4-04 I received this email last night. Evan stopped breathing this morning; funeral Spring Hill Memorial Park in a few days. Please be in prayer for Jeannie and David and the family. I feel so heart broken for them and so totally helpless. My heart is broken and yet I can't begin to imagine their loss and pain. I talked with Jeannie today. She is so sweet and her precious children are being so good and strong for her. Please send a note of encouragement. I learned that Evan's dad was in China and is now in flight home so Jeannie is alone with the kids and he is flying home heartbroken....Elizabeth UPDATE: 7-19-04 Evan has been having a lot of colds this summer, which has reduced the amount of pediasure he can take at tube feedings. He weighs just over 20 pounds. He could use some prayers to improved health and strength. He has had to miss school some too, but he was at school on picture day and this is one of his best pictures in a long time. He is graduating from his developmental center and will start county preschool this fall. I'm looking forward to having him closer to home. JS UPDATE: 5-19-04 Evan had lots of doctor's appointments this April. I have visited a specialed school It would be great to have a tumbleforms swing on an indoor frame and "talking" swith at home if someone is finished with one. Pray for mama UPDATE: 2-29-04 Here is a quick update for Evan. We are so pleased that Evan was able to stay home to recover from pneumonia this winter. It is great that he now attends a developmental center 2 days per week, though it is 30 miles away. Not much has changed with Evan. Developmentally he is 4 months or less, though he is 2 1/2 years old. Inconsistency is still his middle name, but he is consistent about sucking only his right thumb and rolling from side to side. He has some terrible seizure days, averaging 10-30 per day. His difficulty having a BM has returned, though he still gets Senokot daily. He is tube fed only, but we hope to get a swallow study soon so he can start eating baby food and drinking by mouth again. Evan has gotten longer, about 31 1/2 inches, and unfortunatly, thinner 21 1/2 pounds, but we are working on that now that his respitory illness and teething is subsiding. Evan does not like loud noises which can trigger his seizures, but is getting used to children's sounds at school. His teachers have helped him become more willing to be touched and held. I trust the knowledge and caring at his current developmental center, but I am concerned about his transition to the county schools. Please drop me an email if you have any ideas about what to look for during this process. We can't understand how it will benefit him to be in a class working on age-level skills when he needs to work on 6-month-old skills. Congrats to Bob and Robin on the long awaited baby. Take care, The Seviers UPDATE: 1-02-04 Sorry it has taken me so long to respond. Evan has enjoyed his light ball and bear almost as much as his brother and sister. Thanks so much for your consideration and generosity. The bath seat is also working well. The tumbleforms continue to be a source of interest and assistance to him. Evan's EEG didn't reveal a med to help control his seizures better. His neurologist said that the diffuculty we've had with his seizures indicates severe abnormal brain function. He also said that it suggests that the chances of gaining new skills are low. We'd like for him to be able to sit on his own, allowed to eat again, be able to use his hand to get food to his mouth, and indicate what hurts or needs to be changed. I guess we want the smallest improvement to his quality of life. Please pray that it's God's will for him to be able to do some of these things. I think I can accept somewhat gracefully that we won't have Evan with us very long. I wish that his time here could be more comfortable and a bit more enjoyable. Best wishes for the New Year, JS UPDATE: 8-07-03 Except for the poison ivy, we have been settling in great to our new home. Evan may get to go to the new Easter Seals center for some of his therapies soon, and I don't have to teach a night course this semester, so I'm looking forward to a less stressful semester. So far, once we made it through the sale and closing of the house, everything has been pure blessing. Evan has been so busy with his hands the past 2 days, and 2 days in a row is about the most consistency we can expect from him right now. Seizures have leveled off. It's just been a wonderful time. UPDATE: 7-07-03 Evan will be moving to a new house locally this week. His room will be downstairs so that we don't have to cart medicine upstairs from the frig. Also, he will easy access to living room without us having to move machinery downstairs. Perhaps, the best part is we will have lots of shade so he can be outside more comfortably. The past 2 weeks have hard for Evan. He caught a cold from his sister. He had a resistant infection in his left ear, which almost put him in the hospital. Now he is having a GI infection from the stong antibiodics killing the good bacteria as well. Please pray for him to get well and regain his strength. Prior to this, we had seen increasing strength in his back since his last setback, but he still is not sitting unsupported. He will be 2 in two weeks. His name is fitting -- youthful warrior. Take care, Jeannie UPDATE: 5-22-03 Evan has gained some weight, almost to 20 pounds now, but he is refusing to take anything by mouth, so it's all going thru the tube. We still haven't gotten back to the strength he had in mid-March; he is not nearly sitting alone. At least he hasn't been as miserable lately, though he sleeps over half the day. Extra sleep is the price for better seizure control. My prayer request would be for increased quality of life for Evan, possibly sitting alone and being able to smile or indicate enjoyment. It would also be good for all of us if a respite caregiver came into our lives. The special needs care centers are in the opposite direction from my work. We are trying to find a one story accessible house, but I have faith that will work out the way it's meant to. Thanks for your concern. Jeannie UPDATE: 4-16-03 Evan was at his strongest about 3 weeks ago. It seemed he might be able to sit up soon. Since then he has been almost as weak as he was before having the feeding tube inserted. It is sad to see the regression and how miserably he is surviving sometimes. Please pray for his comfort, whatever form that must take. Take care, Jeannie UPDATE: 2-04-03 Evan is home now. The afternoons are rough pain-wise, but the tube is working well. He now weighs 17 1/2 pounds, the most he ever has. That's amazing for him to gain 1/2 pound right after surgery. He doesn't have to taste all his yucky meds anymore, so I'm glad we made the decision. Take care, JS UPDATE: 1-29-03 Evan's surgery to have the feeding tube put in and adnoids taken out is in 2 days. I'm nervous and hopeful. Take care, Jeannie ADDED: 1-21-03 Evan just turned 1 1/2 yesterday. He was not feeling well, but that evening his siblings were able to show him his presents. His 1st birthday illustrated why we CELEBRATE birthdays; it was a real accomplishment for him to make it a year. Eating has been somewhat of a difficulty since he was 7 months old, but breathing also became a challenge in Sept. 2002. Evan enjoys simple things like being able to breathe and eat freely, warm baths, and watching ceiling fans. He is developmentally much like a 4 month old. He can't sit up or smile. Physically, he has partial trisomy 18, which wasn't diagnosed until he was 9 months old. His seizures which began when he was 4 months old were not diagnozed until he was almost one year. He can see light and dark, and some days seems to see fairly well. His extremely low muscle tone has affected him the most. He doesn't move much. Also, his digestive track and lungs have become weak, so it now requires daily maintenance with medicine and machines to keep them working properly. Evan's sister wanted to be a doctor before he was born and wants to even more now. She enjoys being around doctors and nurses, but sometimes she decides they can't do much to help her baby brother, so she spontaneously prays "God please fix my baby." Although he can't do much, we love him very much. He puts stress on our family but he is also a blessing. We think we won't get to have him for very long, so we treasure what time we get. He belonged to God from the beginning, and we just get to borrow him for a little while.