Around Thanksgiving, 11-year-old Oakley Debbs and his family were on vacation in Maine. The honor roll student from West Palm Beach, Florida, was an outstanding athlete despite having asthma and food allergies. In his family’s Thanksgiving basket, Oakley picked out a piece of cake to eat from the prepared assortment of sweets. The tragic turn of events that followed inspired his family and friends to start a campaign to raise awareness and prevent other people from experiencing something similar.
Oakley loved to play tennis, football, and soccer and was a marathon runner despite having asthma and nut allergies. His family described him as a “brave and strong warrior” for battling these illnesses.
On November 24, they were staying in Maine, and Oakley made the decision to eat the pound cake that was left out on the kitchen table. According to his mother Merrill Debbs, Oakley had to always read the labels before he ate anything, but he didn’t see any indications of nuts.
His father, Robert Debbs, said, “He believed it to be a piece of cake. ”. But after consuming it, he said it might have contained nuts when he walked over. “After trying some, his mother agreed that it tasted like nuts; it turned out to be walnut flavor. Robert stated, “As usual, Merrill gave him Benadryl pills. ”. And he said he felt good when he got back. “At that point, the only symptom he was experiencing was a single hive on his lip.
Thanksgiving cake is consumed by a star athlete, who later passes away in his father’s arms.
Oakley Debbs passed away at age 11 as a result of a severe walnut allergy.
However, Oakley also started throwing up shortly after he complained of chest pains. When his parents called 911, he was already blue when the ambulance arrived ten minutes later. Oakley’s airwaves had closed and his heart had stopped beating.
I’m writing about Robert J.
on behalf of.
Debbs and Oakley’s identical twin, Debbs Merrill Olivia.
I’m very dejected as I type this.
Tyler Debbs Squire published this on November 26, 2016.
The family then had to come to terms with such a tragic loss and understand why Oakley couldn’t be saved. Merrill declared her “beautiful, amazing, talented, and adorable son” shouldn’t have perished. The family started the Red Sneaker Foundation to educate people about the signs of anaphylaxis, an immediate and potentially fatal allergic reaction affecting multiple organs.
The family made the decision to use Oakley’s beloved red sneakers as an effective symbol to encourage greater education and awareness among communities of people with food allergies.
On December 1st, 2016, Red Sneakers For Oakley posted a blog.
Even if an allergic reaction only manifests itself in a few minor symptoms, experts advise using epinephrine as soon as possible. Merrill exclaimed, “My kid was a rock star and a good, good kid. Moreover, I always had a deep-seated belief that he would influence someone’s life in some way; I just didn’t know how. So a big part of what drives me comes from Oakley’s legacy. Please let people know about this incident in order to raise awareness of the dangers posed by food allergies and the steps we can take to prevent tragedies like this from happening again.
