DALLAS, Texas — A North Texas teen who was paralyzed after jumping into a pool to get away from a wasp is still recovering in a hospital.
On June 20, 13-year-old Semyon Williams Jr, or SJ as his family calls him, broke his spine after he dove into a pool.
“It just makes me sad...because he's just so young,” said Anya Camper, his mother.
Camper said her son was hanging out with friends at a pool in Frisco when he dove into the water to escape a wasp.
She said he dove in headfirst, and his friends had to go in after him when he didn’t resurface. Anya said her son was conscious the entire time.
“He said I thought 'I was going to die.' He said 'I thought I was going to drown,'” said his mother.
Before the accident, she described her son as a kid who loved being around people. He played football and loved to swim. What’s hard for her is seeing her son lying in a bed, not able to do the things he loves. He enjoyed spending time with his brothers.
Anya said SJ recently had surgery to repair some of the broken bones in his neck at Children's Medical Center in Dallas. He’ll next need months of rehab.
“It just makes me sad because he’s just so young,” said his mother. “You just never expect it to fall at your front door.”
SJ’s grandfather Louis Camper said SJ is already showing some small signs of progress. He’s able to move his fingers slightly.
“This is nothing that a person dreams of. We’re encouraged by what is to come,” he said.
Anya said she wants other parents and kids to remember her son’s accident anytime they’re near water.
“Let this be an opportunity to realize that anything can happen,” said Anya.
A GoFundMe was created to help the family with the unexpected medical bills.