FORT WORTH, Texas — A Keller teenager who was hit by lightning during a family vacation in Florida has made remarkable progress in his recovery. But now, hospitalized in north Texas, his family is praying for a miracle or two.
Jacob Brewer, 14, and his family were vacationing at Siesta Key near Sarasota on July 16, when an afternoon storm developed. With the storm advancing, they packed up their belongings and were rushing from the beach to the safety of their vehicle. A lightning flash knocked them to the ground.
The bolt hit Jacob in the chest and exited his right foot. His heart stopped.
His mom Barbara Brewer told WFAA in an interview a few days later that two strangers, and then a deputy, performed CPR for up to 45 minutes as Jacob was rushed to a hospital.
"I thought I lost him on the beach," she said. "He was gone."
"It's been a really rough few weeks, honestly," his dad Jeremiah Brewer said outside Cook Children's Hospital in Fort Worth earlier this week, where Jacob is currently receiving treatment.
"This is probably the longest we've talked to each other," Barbara Brewer said with a weary laugh as she stood next to her husband. "It's usually like, 'Hi and bye'."
COVID precautions at Cook Children's mean that only one parent can be in the room with Jacob at a time. They take turns, often several days at a time, being by his bedside.
"His case is so rare," Barbara Brewer said. "And it's a difficult case. He's basically paralyzed from the waist down."
Doctors are still trying to determine how permanent Jacob's spinal and nerve damage will be. Burns to his chest, his hands and his feet are being successfully treated. But there are still difficulties controlling his high blood pressure, a side effect of his neurological injuries.
Jacob is, however, alert with no apparent brain damage.
"We're hopeful. We've had miracles so far, and we're hopeful to see more miracles," his dad said.
"We just keep praying," Barbara Brewer added.
They hope the next phase of Jacob's recovery will include a rehab facility in Chicago: the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab, which specializes in treating mobility issues. They are trying to navigate insurance issues, transportation, and COVID-related precautions as the details are worked out.
They are also trying to accept the family separation that a trip to the Chicago facility will bring.
"We're home. We're together," Barbara Brewer said in reference to the weeks it took to bring Jacob home from Florida. "And so to split us apart again, it's going to be hard. But we want Jacob to have the best care."
Jacob has told his parents that his immediate goal is to play the trombone again. He should be in the marching bad this year at Timber Creek High School.
"Hearing him have that goal, I'm like you know what Jacob, we're here, we're going to support you, we're going to help you, whatever we can do," his mom said.
Along the way, the family tries to find a light-hearted moment when they can. One was delivered by a Florida hockey team. The Tampa Bay Lightning to be exact. Before he left a Tampa hospital, a representative of the team presented the "lighting boy from Texas" with a bag of Tampa Bay Lightning swag. His parents said it gave Jacob a good laugh.
"He's a tough kid," Jeremiah Brewer said. "And he said, one thing he told me, was this trip has given me an iron will," to recover. " And I'm proud of him to hear him talk like that."
Proud and thankful to hear him talk at all, after that one horrible day on a Florida beach.
If you would like to contribute to Jacob's medical and transportation costs, click the link to donate to the family's GoFundMe page.