JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A teen paralyzed in a Tennessee shooting has finally come home to Jacksonville after his family was faced with financial challenges that kept him far away from home.
The parents of 18-year-old Jameion Washington put out a call to the community in May to help with financial obligations that were hindering them from getting their son transferred from a Memphis hospital to Brooks Rehabilitation in Jacksonville.
His medical flight arrived at Craig Municipal Airport on Wednesday. His grandmother accompanied him on the plane.
Washington was shot in the back multiple times in early February while he was living with his grandmother in Memphis. He was left permanently paralyzed from the neck down and unable to talk.
Now, he will undergo a lengthy evaluation at Brooks.
His father, James Washington, lost his job to remain by his son’s side while he was in the ICU miles away from home.
His mother, Tahitta Washington, remained in Jacksonville to work. The couple burned through their savings and ran up credit card bills, trying to pay the mounting debts.
“Seeing him come in. I breathed a little easier because I got him back home where I know he will be taken care of the way he needs to be taken care of here,” James Washington said.
His father credits one Brooks Rehab employee for helping to bring his son home.
“She handled everything that needed to be handled to get him here,” he said through tears.
However, Washington’s struggle is far from over because once he is released from rehab, he and his family will have to adjust to an altered lifestyle.
Those changes include retrofitting their home for their son, who will require hands-on assistance for the rest of his life.
“We have other obstacles that we have to deal with when it comes to our housing. Getting things prepared for him to come home,” his mother said.