JVD woman pleas for help for her & paralysed son
In an exclusive interview with Virgin Islands News Online, Callwood explained that her son Brae’den E. Edwards, who was an A student of the Elmore Stoutt High School, was diagnosed with a cyst in the spine of his neck in January of this year.
Edwards did surgery twice in Miami, Florida, but he was left paralysed. He spent one month in rehabilitation and over two months at Peebles Hospital.
The grieving mother remarked that her son is still able to study his lessons as he is able to speak and communicate, and his hands work somewhat as he often utilises his phone and computer.
“This boy is very, very smart. He was valedictorian in 2012 at Jost Van Dyke Primary School. He never brought home B’s and C’s,” she said.
Callwood is asking for any assistance, in whatever form, so that her son can get a proper education. She said she had attempted to get her son’s school lessons so that he can continue his education but that request fell on deaf ears.
“It’s like he’s just going to lay down there and let his brain sizzle and go to waste,” she said in dismay.
‘Injury to injury’
To make matters worse for her son, Callwood said Edwards recently suffered a fall due to the poor state of the road in front of her home.
She said they were just returning from a therapy session and Edwards was just placed down by a Good Samaritan who owns a truck and had volunteered to drive them to and from the ferry dock.
The mother related that the wheel of the automatic wheelchair got stuck and when her son pressed the “drive” button, he pitched forward and landed face down on the pavement. He received some scars on his face and hit his right knee so hard that it swelled and he now has to travel to Tortola for a doctor’s visit.
The cost of his health care following that incident was taken care by National Health Insurance (NHI).
Callwood lamented that the bad piece of road directly in front of her home also causes water to be splashed on to her veranda. She said, however, that she would particularly like it fixed so her son could drive in on his wheelchair.
This news site was told that Edwards’ father passed away in 2012 and in that same year she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Callwood has five children, all employed and living on their own, some abroad.
She said she is supposed to be attending to her cancer appointments but is currently behind schedule since she is not able to get it done as she is the full-time caretaker of her son.
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56 Responses to “JVD woman pleas for help for her & paralysed son”
Accessibility is another issue. Our ministers and people in command go abroad and it is easy to see the respect that persons with disabilities get in UK, U.S, Canada and other countries. They get the best parking spots, restroom accommodations, and MUST be able to get in and out of any public building with ease. Here, they can't even get into a bank. This rubbish need to stop.
Mother, push, push and push. If you give up, your son will suck salt here.
W......... dont Care bout Us. He Only wanted we votes yo
Abuse don't always come verbal or physical. It also comes in neglect by those who are in position to rectify a situation but wilfully ignore it
Now with the matter at hand. We do not know if the Minister or education department was contacted and to what extent help was given or refused.
Bear in mind some people face situations and expect the assistance will be automatically granted without them applying for services. Now I am not saying what did or did not happen as I do not know.
Make your comment general instead of pointing fingers
Have you been in touch withMinister of Education? Is there anyone who can assist with advocacy? Online courses is a possibility? A pastor to assist with counseling ? You are on the right track,making a plea on social media..Homeschooling? Wow...Your district rep? I know this will end well because of your efforts so hang in there..Please take a breath find time to rest and to take care of yourself...Have your son Google for online courses in the meantime. ...How can you be contacted..
This is where all of us as a human family should do whatever we can to help this family. After all, this could have been anyone of us.
If the District Rep could spear head efforts, or someone in the Jos Van Dyke community do likewise and tell us where and what individual such as myself can do, I will be more than happy to help this family in whatever way I can.
This life can be such a bad journey for some. Nevertheless, I urge the Mom to stay strong, and don't forget herself in this struggle. My thoughts and prayers are with them.
If there is a way for us to reach out and offer our help? Please let us know. God Bless.
I totally agree with an other poster who stated we need to do better for our disabled brothers and sisters. Certainly being disabled should not end access to continuing or getting ones education.
We have to do better BVI. How we treat others less able than us is a poor reflection on us all and our entire society.
so that he can continue his education.
It's time we make a move to rectify our flaws. Proper sidewalks and access will be a good start. He does not need exclusion
We have so many churches and my honest opinion they does nothing for the community just a set of pretend dresses up church goers. I am sure some of them cannot say a day they give back and help with someone life.
I have read all the comments that were made, however, the parents failed to mention whether they sought assistance from any Govt. Depts. , Govt. Ministers, the District Rept. or any other organization. Lambasting the Minister for Edu. or the District Rep. is uncalled for at this early stage. The parents need to inform the public whether or not they sought assistance from any Govt. Dept. before they made a public appeal.
My district rep. Knows about the situation on the road we did talk, we communicate. At the end of the way, he is not the one to take up the shovel on the road. He knows about the situation of his schooling also like I said, we communicate. There are some things that I expect from him that he has reach out and there are things that's not in his department
I have spoken to the min. Education personally in his office who at the time picked up his phone and called Mr. Selwyn and asked him communicate with the school. The school called me in about April while he was in peebles hospital notifying me that they got a call and was preparing a packaged to be picked up (APRIL). Said they would give me a call to pick up. Am still waiting his hospital case manager has also been in communication with them.
PUBLIC WORK
I have called Mr Ross in public works who is always in a meeting. First time he advised me to call Georges whose Secretary answered the phone and spoke for him. He never came on the phone. He stated he was going to call Graham ( JVD PWD Supervisor) to take pics and send to him which he did and this was before my son's accident on the wheel chair. Since I have not seen or heard from them I gain the help of a local whose truck tail gate will ascend to the ground to pick him up to be transported to the ferry dock to go to tortola to have his therapy. The road is to dangerous for him to travel on his own. Sometimes when we try the chair takes it own course skidding off the side towards the embankment by the sea.
I have tried calling Ross again since his fall who was in a meeting again and promised to call me back. Am still waiting.
Thank you very much for your suggestions. If you have any other suggestion that can help the situation with his education of the road being fixed please advise and have a blessed day
Speak what you know now. Even if she got some kind of pocket handout from the district rep. is she asking for a house. Sounds like you would offer a $ then throw it in people face later
Her child was in 4th form when he took sick. We learned that much about him. All i heard the lady was asking for is for her child school work to continue so that his brains does not go to waste because it seems like she said she already reached out but the system done dropped him.
some of you stating bout how much help he done get NOT. Is he walking? Is he receiving his education? This is a program BVI Government should done have implemented in case these situation arises. Stop sitting down and waiting till here start stuff for BVI to go copy. All she begging is for public work to fix the GOVERNMENT road from the boy mashing up his chair that the same government probably had to pay for, himself, to travel to his destination to & from.
If matters get worse, he is still their problem. He is a minor. He is Government's problem. If she was negligent about taking care of him or causing him to not be able to continue his education the Government in the US woulda dam sure find her.
Sources @Peebles told me this lady slept 2 months in hospital next to that boy in uncomfortable position taking care of her son. Ms. You said you a CANCER SURVIVOR? Please contact ms. Fahie whose over the Cancer Society over there in Tortola.
You causes your own people to run to another country to seek help after you fail them. A system where everybody in position looks out for themselves and their closest next of kin. The RICH and theirs get richer, the POOR and theirs get poorer.
If the min. Education and the school have not reached out to assist him with his education, I do hope like you said that the dist. Rep do.
Young man I pray you well, God is going to raise you up to give him glory. When all others fail you, he will step in. It is well
did you have somewhere for her to stay in America for her to abode after hospital say her time was up? Why are you so ignorant? Are you a family member that have a house out there? She said the government here communicated with the Dr. there who called her before she return to the territory and told her that he made calls and was told that she had to be living in America for 6 months before he was given any help. That's their way of thinking even tho he was born in the US.
What word of thanks? How YOU know she ain't thanking GOD that saved him? Oh did you give money and now you need your piece of shine. You are pitiful
Really? I am making an appeal to have my son education continues from him laying in bed or his chair day in, day out, receiving visits from all his school friends that he use to accompany to school, some of them he helped tutored when taking their exam to pass into high school. People can be in a wheel chair and still accomplish great things.
I am asking for a piece of Government road to be fixed and you are asking why I I don't give a word of thanks to all the help he received to help save his life. People has done things and donated mony to my son in which I definitely thanked them at that time. FYI, I have already reached out to these people for what i am now making a public appeal. When my son return to BBC primary school a second time I was told by the then principal Mar a Martin that there are no room in the high schoo and he would have to repeat class 5. That was not a problem, he would gain more. He should've been in form 5 not form 4. I also made that clear to the min. Education in our meeting. (I am not begging for money) God will provide even if he has to send you with it. He has been My question to you is
1. Are you equal to God that guided the doctors hand that I should give you thanks too?
2. Did you give me a donation or a fun raiser that I forgot to thank you or should I give you a public vote of thanks? In that case whomever you are, I am grateful and God bless you continually.
3. Did you pray for him? I will not thank you for that. That was a commandment from God. "That we pray one for another". The glory does not belong to you. It belongs to GOD
Have a great day.