Tragedy hits twice for brave mum
A year on from the death of her husband, Nelson woman Emily Campbell did not expect to face death again so soon.
Her “incredibly hilarious” and “beautiful” young son Zephaniah died unexpectedly on July 1. The toddler was almost 2.
Campbell said doctors thought he may have suffered from a small heart arrhythmia, without symptoms, and when he caught a virus, his heart shut down during the fever.
“It was nothing we could foresee or do anything about,” Campbell said.
It was a scary, shocking ordeal and she said at first her heart did not want to go on. Campbell had already lost her husband Craig Campbell to cancer in July last year.
She described him as an electrician by trade, but a musician and artist at heart.
“He was amazingly creative and such a people person,” she said.
He was a friendly, outgoing person who worked hard for his family, she said.
“He married sort of late, at 39, and one of his biggest dreams was to be a husband and a father.”
It was awesome that in his last years he got to do that, she said.
“He absolutely adored us. He was very loving, kind and gentle. ”
The couple really appreciated life because of what they faced after he was diagnosed with melanoma several years ago, Campbell said.
At the beginning of last year he started getting really sick, she said.
“The cancer had just spread everywhere and six months later he died.
“The thing that got me through that was my relationship with God.
“He prepared my heart from what was ahead, helped me to grow fierce and have the strength to walk that out.”
After everything she has been through the brave mum said she still trusts in God’s bigger plan.
“I didn’t think I would walk through another death so soon,” she said. All of her children were such healthy kids — “just full of life, fun, strong boys”.
Zephaniah was strongwilled but also quite peaceful, she said.
Just like his father he loved people and connecting with people — he was really communicative, even without words, she said. “He would just light up around people.”
His two older brothers, Elijah, 5, and Gabriel, 3, adored him.
“They also gave each other a hard time and had fun,” Campbell said.
Emily Campbell credits her family, friends and church community as being a huge support.
How to help
givealittle.co.nz/zephaniah