In the last five years or so, the conversation about vaccines has been pushed to the forefront of parents’ minds. Although many parents are still lining up to make sure their children get these life-saving medications, others have become resistant to doing so. Their reasoning is all over the place. Some don’t want the government to be able to tell them what to do, and others believe the shot contains harmful ingredients. Our current administration’s belief that vaccines are harmful isn’t helping. That’s why the mom of a 7-year-old boy with measles in South Carolina, which currently has an outbreak, is standing by her choice to not vaccinate.
The boy, who is named Ethan, has been in the hospital since January with measles encephalitis, a complication of the illness that causes swelling in his brain. “He’s pretty much as if he was paralyzed,” his father Luis said in an exclusive interview with The Independent.
Luis and his wife Kristina have four sons. Although Ethan is the only one unvaccinated for the measles, three of the four boys contracted the illness. As her son lay in his hospital bed unable to move, she stood by her decision to not vaccinate.
“We’re not blaming God for this,” the 35-year-old mom said. “Yes, it hurts, of course, it hurts. But God has chosen Ethan for a reason. God is doing something, and we’re gonna glorify his name regardless,” she continued, adding that they “wouldn’t change it any other way.”
“If I knew this could be the outcome, I still wouldn’t have given my son the vaccine,” she said.
According to the Mayo Clinic, measles causes a “blotchy rash” that could be red, purple, or brown. It usually starts on someone’s face and behind the ears before spreading to the person’s chest, back, and feet.
The first symptoms include fever (which can go up to 105 degrees), runny nose, red, watery eyes, and a dry cough. Symptoms typically present seven to 14 days after contact with the virus.
When asked why she chose not to give her son with measles the vaccine, the mom parroted language used by other anti-vax parents. “Our biggest reason why we didn’t do it is just with all the unnecessary stuff they add into it,” she said.
“With my own eyes, I have seen the damage it does to kids who are perfectly normal, and then once they get it, they’re not the same anymore. They think it’s so safe, why do we need to add so much to our children’s bodies?” she wondered.
Her line of thinking aligns with what Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his MAHA cohort believe about vaccines given to children. He has repeatedly said he believes vaccines cause autism (a theory that has repeatedly been debunked by science) and called the COVID-19 vaccine the “deadliest vaccine ever made,” which has been shown to be untrue.
The South Carolina Department of Public Health reported 11 new cases of measles since February 17, 2026, according to a February 21 story reported by WCSC. Those additional cases brought the total number of cases in the state up to 973.
Places of exposure were all in Spartanburg County, where the family lives. They included Spartanburg Community College – Giles Campus, a Costco, and two churches. Those who were exposed were advised to monitor themselves for symptoms until early March.
Although the 7-year-old boy with measles is expected to recover in some ways, there is no way yet to know what kind of damage has been done long-term. The mom, however, believes “there will be a miracle.”
“That’s what’s keeping us strong, and being able to be here with him,” she told The Independent. “We know it’s in God’s hands.”
