THE mum and dad of an “amazing” little boy have shared the heartbreaking last photo of him in hospital, after a phone call changed their lives forever.
In June 2024, a day before Father’s Day, Elias Highfill’s parents were left “broken” after receiving a call from a family member looking after the tot and his brother Oliver, telling them there had been an accident.
Elias Highfill was just shy of two years old when he died due to a drowning accident[/caption]
His parents shared a final picture of Elias in hospital, swathed in Spiderman gear[/caption]
Two-year-old Elias – who was superhero-mad and dreamed of being just “like Spiderman” – had wandered off on his own and fallen into the pool. They didn’t know how long he’d been in the water.
The little boy was rushed to hospital, and his parents soon followed, in a state of shock.
Elias’ dad, Austin, 28, says: “I had been working a night shift, and Miranda [Elias’ mum] had the baby, so the boys were being looked after by a family member.
“It was Father’s Day the next day, and we had all planned a big family BBQ to celebrate.
“But we got a phone call that morning to say there had been an accident and he’d fallen into the swimming pool at the house, and we rushed to the hospital where Elias had been taken.”
When they got there, the devastated couple were told there was no hope for Elias’ survival.
Though doctors had done all they could to try and save him, the little boy’s brain had been starved of oxygen from drowning.
He was declared brain dead, and doctors explained the life support machine was the only thing keeping him alive.
A photo from the hospital shows Elias covered in a blanket, with his favourite Spiderman toy beside him, his older brother stroking his hair.
His mum, Miranda, 31, who has a daughter Winry, one, and a son Oliver, five, with Austin, as well as two children from previous relationships, Donnie, 15, and Ariel, 10, said of the sweet photo: “We wanted him to have his Spiderman there with him, as it was his life.
“Elias’ dream was always to be like Spiderman. He was his absolute hero.
“He would always jump around the house striking the same pose as Spiderman, and he would wear his Spiderman costume every day if he could.
“He was always playing games as Spiderman and his sidekick, Spin.
“He was only a month from his second birthday, and we’d planned to have a Spiderman-themed party, which he would have loved.”
Water safety for children
In movies depicting drowning, people splash about or cry for help.
But the Child Accident Prevention Trust warns that drowning can happen silently.
“A drowning child can’t speak or control their arms,” it says.
“They slip quietly under the water.”
That’s what it’s so important to supervise babies and small children when they’re near bodies of water – from baths, to pools, the sea and garden ponds.
You should never leave your little one alone, even for a moment, as they may drown silently in very little water.
For baths, make sure you have everything you need before bath time, stay with your little one and keep them at arm’s length.
While bath seats can be a useful tool in helping busy parents at bathtime, it’s important to remember they’re just a support, and NOT a safety device.
They can topple or your baby can slip out.
For paddling pools, make sure to empty them as soon as you’ve finished with them.
Make sure your child can’t get into a neighbour’s pond or pool and be alert to any ponds, pools or hot tubs when visiting other people’s homes.
And keep an eye on your little one at the beach, as toddlers can wander off and fall into shallow water.
In the UK, the number of children who died as a result of drowning doubled between 2020 and 2024, according to the Royal Lifesaving Society.
It said 125 children aged 17 and younger had died in that time period. Most incidents (86 per cent) happened when a child wasn’t supervised by an adult.
In the US, nearly 900 children and teens up to the age of 19 die as a result of drowning, according to the Children’s Safety Network.
Austin, a road assistance worker for a trucking company, and Miranda, a stay-at-home mum, who live in Missouri, US, were left heartbroken by the devastating turn of events.
But they have taken some comfort from the fact that their little superhero son will never be forgotten.
‘Little superhero saves lives’
Elias wanted to be just like Spiderman and would wear his costume every day if he could[/caption]
Austin and Miranda with, Elias, Oliver Donnie and Ariel[/caption]
Just like his idol, Spiderman, Elias saved the lives of others – as his organs were donated by his parents after his tragic death, saving the lives of five people.
After doctors carried out tests to check his brain function, Elias was tragically declared brain dead. It was only the life support machine that was keeping him alive.
Faced with the realisation that their son wasn’t going to survive, they made the bravest decision any parents could make.
Austin asked whether Elias’s organs could be donated to others, as he’d already experienced organ donation within his own family.
Austin says: “We decided straight away that Elias would be an organ donor.
“One of my cousins died a few years ago in a car accident, and her organs were donated to save lives.
“So when we knew that Elias wasn’t going to make it, we wanted some good to come out of such a terrible tragedy.”
His heart was donated to a two-year-old boy, his liver was given to another young boy, and his kidneys and intestines were given to three adult recipients.
Our family has been broken by this tragedy and it’s hard to carry on without him. We are just taking it day by day
Austin Highfill
Austin says: “It was bittersweet that we had lost him in such terrible circumstances, but there was a glimmer of something positive, knowing that a part of him is still out there helping other people.
“It felt like the right thing to do. We wanted to do it in Elias’s honour.”
The dad describes Elias as “an amazing little boy”.
“He wasn’t fussy, and always happy with life.
“He was so easy-going and very close with his brother Oliver, who misses him terribly.
“Our family has been broken by this tragedy, and it’s hard to carry on without him. We are just taking it day by day.
“Having Winry there helps, as she reminds us of Elias. They have all the same mannerisms and personality.”
The couple have received a letter from the family of the little boy who received Elias’s liver.
Miranda says: “They said how grateful they were for Elias’s gift of life and how it’s totally changed the life of their little boy, which was wonderful to hear.
“We haven’t replied yet, but we will do shortly to tell them how much it meant to us to know that he has been given a second chance at life.”
HOW TO BECOME AN ORGAN DONOR
JUST over 4,500 people received an organ transplant in 2023 from 2,387 donors – but more than 400 people per year die waiting because there are not enough donors.
NHS Blood and Transplant says: “Only one per cent of people who die in the UK every year die in the right circumstances and in the right location to be eligible for their organs to be used to save someone’s life.
“That is why we need as large a pool of people as possible.”
The law has changed so all adults are “opt-out” organ donors, meaning hospitals can use their organs unless they told the NHS they did not want to be a donor, or their family says no after they die.
Six in 10 families refuse to let doctors use their loved one’s organs.
People who want their organs to be used to help others after they die can register online on this link.
Parents must give their consent for their child’s organs to be donated if the child dies.
Health chiefs have also added sign-up options to new passport and driving licence applications to try and boost numbers.
Elias will never be forgotten – and will always be remembered as a superhero, just like his idol.
Austin says: “Spiderman was his absolute hero.
“Elias was always so quick to apologise or forgive – for someone so young, he had an amazing sense of right and wrong.
“And to know that he’s saved lives just like Spiderman did is a comfort to us.”
Elias was ‘always happy with life’[/caption]
He also had ‘an amazing sense of right and wrong’[/caption]
