Texas Border Business
“It’s better to give than to receive” may be a popular saying about the psychological and spiritual impact the act of giving has on an individual.
But for 16-year-old Isaac Garza, he gives because he received.
In 2016, at age 7, Isaac was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease, a condition that mainly affects children and causes inflammation in the artery walls and affects blood flow to the heart. He spent 60 days in a San Antonio hospital for life-saving treatment following a near-death event.
During his hospitalization, he received at least one toy each day from the facility’s Child Life department, which provided a sense of normalcy, joy and distraction during a stressful time.
“It’s hard to describe how you feel when your child is gravely ill; it’s a living nightmare. As a parent in a hospital room with a sick child, all you want is for your child to feel better and get well,” says Laura Gomez Garza, Isaac’smom, who still has vivid memories of her son’s reaction to receiving toys from hospital staff during his hospitalization. “I remember his respiratory therapist bringing him a model car; Isaac’s face lit up, it was pure joy! That toy lifted his spirits, and he immediately started playing with it. It was a welcome distraction, a moment of escape from the beeping of the machines, being connected to an IV and the discomfort of spending weeks in a hospital bed. Those moments are the ones you hold on to because your child is so happy in that moment.”
To date, Isaac has collected more than 10,000 items like games, books and stuffed animals for hospitalized patients.
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