COLLIERVILLE, Tenn. — The sign inside the Langston home says it all. This is Gavin’s Clubhouse. The house is filled with a lot of toys and a lot of love for a special four-year-old boy with autism.
Gavin’s parents are Jennifer and Nathan Langston.
“He has a really great personality. He doesn’t talk. However, he lets you know when wants something. He loves to cuddle. He is autistic,” Jennifer Langston said.
Jennifer and Nathan will tell you Gavin is their little hero. You can see it on their faces and hear it in their voices.
“Give me kisses? Ah, thank you. Hi. Did you just say hi?” Jennifer said.
This little boy amazes his parents every day.
“Using both hands for him, he used to not use both hands. So, this is amazing. Him feeding himself, both hands. So, I’m very happy, very proud,” Jennifer said.
It’s easy to understand their pride when you take a look back at Gavin’s life.
“Gavin has had four brain surgeries. Gavin has had seizures. He’s been on different medications. He’s been the hospital,” Jennifer said.
Gavin was born March 28 of 2012.
“Nine pounds, six ounces, almost 22 inches long. He was a big, big boy,” Jennifer said.
For the Langstons, they saw a perfect and beautiful baby boy. What they didn’t expect to see were some health issues such as startle reflexes and seizures.
“We were filming him and saying okay, it seems like it’s not hurting him. but we need to get it checked out,” Nathan said.
The Langston’s got Gavin checked out at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis. They say he actually started having a seizure in the emergency room.
Gavin was given a Cat scan, but the Langston’s were floored when the doctor gave them the results.
“He (doctor) showed us an image of his brain, and he said ‘You see this? This isn’t supposed to be here’ and you immediately….’Is he going to die? What’s going on?'” Jennifer said.
The Langstons were heartbroken and worried about their son.
“I remember looking at him saying ‘We can’t go home without our baby.’ I thought of his toys, his little bed, his baby clothes. I said ‘We can’t go home without this boy with us,'” Jennifer said.
Doctors discovered he had a genetic disorder called tuberous sclerosis or TSC.
“And we had never heard of it. They dropped the diagnosis on us. It’s like what is that? It sounds scary,” Nathan said.
It was scary. Gavin was put on medication for his seizures and spasms, but the seizures got worse. Gavin was having as many as 50 seizures a day.
“I had questioned is he going to talk? Is he going to walk? Is he going to drive? Is he going to the prom? Is he going to get married? I was thinking in the future,” Jennifer said.
He would undergo several surgeries for tubers or brain lesions and have a G-tube installed for a severe swallow disorder.
But the Langstons said with each procedure there was still hope because of Le Bonheur.
“You get excited because you know the surgery is going to be a success. we have the best doctors in the world,” Jennifer said.
After Gavin’s fourth surgery, his seizures began to disappear.
“He hasn’t had a seizure since. He’s really developing now,” Jennifer said.
The Langston’s said it’s because of their faith in God and their faith in Le Bonheur.
“God put us here. He says ‘You’re going to stay because your child needs the best care and that’s at Le Bonheur,'” Jennifer said.
The Langstons said Gavin is their little hero.
He’s conquering his clubhouse, his outdoor play set and now the world thanks to the life-saving work done at Le Bonheur.
“Le Bonheur has saved his life and given him a chance to grow up as normal as possible,” Nathan said.