MEMPHIS, Tenn. — About 30 miles northwest of Memphis and just off Highway 63, all roads lead to the tiny town of Tyronza, Arkansas.
It’s a community with a big heart that welcomes you even when you come across an occasional road block along the way.
In a nearby neighborhood, 10-year-old Caden Hardin knows a thing or two about roadblocks in life. But he doesn’t let them slow him down.
“Sometimes I will play outside or I’ll play board games sometimes,”
Caden’s parents, Laura and Josh, will tell you he’s a smart and active kid that you’ll find on the family golf cart with his younger brother Cruz.
“Caden is smart. He loves to play basketball. He’s an all A student,” Laura said. But when he was just 2-years-old he wasn’t doing so well, especially when he tried to sleep.
“He would wake up in the middle of the night, he would make a smacking noise and he would be in a daze,” Laura said.
Caden was having seizures and his family felt helpless.
“You’re like helpless. Like she said, you’re just stuck watching your kids have a seizure and there’s nothing you can do about it,” Josh said.
One of Caden’s seizures was so intense his parents knew he had to be rushed to one place – the emergency room at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis.
“It was a long and scary ride, because you don’t really know what’s going on with your kid. At 2-years-old he couldn’t talk. He couldn’t tell us what was going on. So it was a lot of prayers.”
The family felt their prayers were answered when they got to Le Bonheur.
“Almost any parent will tell you when they see a seizure they were scared their child was going to die. We know different. We know we can treat seizures, but we have to help them through that process,” Dr. Caron said.
To this day, Caden still has seizures and is a candidate for sudden unexpected death in Epilepsy. But Le Bonheur is there to help treat and control his condition.
But what’s also helping them is their faith. They say the word of God gives them hope.
“We trust him and find peace and comfort in the hard times and the bad times,” they said.
But this close knit family of four has plenty of good times when they’re together. They believe in the healing power of laughter.
There’s is a lot of laughter and a lot of love for Caden as they know his health is in good hands.
“It’s overwhelming to watch your kid and know that he is happy playing and functioning,” Laura said.
Caden’s parents say he’s going to make it because he’s at one of the best children’s hospitals in America with a big heart for children.
“Even when we’re not headed to the hospital and we see that heart, it’s just heartwarming to us.”
And for Caden, he’s back on the road getting better with the help of Le Bonheur. The hospital is giving him a chance to enjoy a healthier childhood as he maneuvers through a few roadblocks in life.
