Like many mothers, Lauren Hill-Wilson of Wichita, Kansas, had to go to work last Thursday. She arranged for a friend to watch her 7-year-old son, ZJ. Later, Hill-Wilson received a call saying that her son was being rushed to the hospital. She learned that her friend had taken ZJ swimming at Red Roof Inn.
While swimming, he reportedly went underwater and didn’t resurface. First responders were able to revive him to the point of getting a heartbeat. But now, days later, ZJ is still unconscious. His mother is searching for answers.
It’s ‘just his brain,’ the mom said of her son’s condition.
“They said my baby had died twice, and they brought him back and got him a heartbeat, but it’s just his brain,” HIll-Wilson told KSN. She wants to know what happened in the moments before ZJ went underwater, but so far, she hasn’t been able to collect any answers. Now, Hill-Wilson is fielding questions from her younger children, who want to know what happened to their brother.
Hill-Wilson vowed to be more protective of her son if he recovers.
“My 4-year-old actually asks me every time he sees me where his brother is at,” she said. “Today, I let him talk to his brother, and he kept saying ‘ZJ! ZJ! He’s not responding.’”
Hill-Wilson is praying that ZJ, the eldest of five children, wakes up. “It would mean a lot to me, and I will promise him, I’ll be more, more, more, more protective over him,” she shared.
ZJ wasn’t alone during the incident.
Sergeant Atlee Vogt of the Wichita Police Department confirmed that ZJ wasn’t alone at the time of his near-drowning, the Daily Mail reports. “What we initially learned that kids were swimming and playing in the pool,” Vogt said. “There were other children and parents that were with the child here at the facility.”
Family says his condition is improving.
While Hill-Wilson prays for and awaits her son’s recovery, the Wichita Police Department is investigating the case, speaking to witnesses to get an idea of what happened that day. A week after the incident, his family members say he is showing improvement, according to a GoFundMe page. “ZJ has great kidney functions, a strong heartbeat and his lungs have improved,” a statement on the fundraiser page reads.
The family is raising money for any expenses that may arise.
The money raised will assist Hill-Wilson in covering any medical expenses insurance does not. The funds will also go toward any legal fees that may arise. Any extra will go to Lauren, who is out of work during this stressful time. The fundraiser has collected more than $3,000 of its $15,000 goal thus far.
