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MAKE JOYFUL
CHOICES
Make joyful
choices and
do what is
right,
tell
your family you love them,
hug and kiss them each night.
Our footsteps
are counted
by the Lord
from above,
then he takes
us to Heaven
on the wings
of a dove.
- Gloria J Clark 2006
Click here to learn more about
Michael
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 He was “loving”,
“caring”, “a friend”, “a good wrestler”, “a good family member”, “a
brother”, “funny”, and he loved food. These are some of the words used
to describe Michael by his sisters and little brother. For me, his mom,
he was a fun-loving, curious boy with big brown eyes and an adventurous
nature. He loved watching movies and spending time with his family and
friends. He loved to laugh and have fun, to swim and go on vacations. He
always had a big, contagious smile and a rippling laugh. And he loved to
befriend others who may not have had a friend without him. He
stood up for the underdog and treated people kindly, even when they
weren’t so kind to him. He loved church youth group and nachos.
But on January 23,
2006, all that changed. It was a normal evening for our family. We had
dinner, the kids got ready for bed, and my husband and I relaxed in the
living room. Michael ate dinner, took his shower, worked on some
homework, laid out his clothes for the next day – stopping to ask his
dad how they looked together (he was at that age). Then he told us good
night and went off to bed. It was about 10pm when we decided it was time
to retire for the night. My husband, Troy, went to check on the kids and
found Michael hanging from his bunk bed with his Tae Kwon Do belt. The
next few hours were like a nightmare. There were police, paramedics,
pastors, and the medical examiner all there to tell us that Michael was
the victim of a terrible accident.
 He, we later learned,
had heard about The Choking Game at school and had decided to try it. It
was the first and last time for him.
I have often
looked back and wondered what I could have done
differently to stop it. The truth is, kids are curious and sometimes,
despite our best efforts to protect them, things happen that blind-side
us. Troy and I had never heard of The Choking Game before it took our
son’s life. Our mission now is to inform other parents and kids of this
deadly “game” and try to help others.
There's much more information about
Michael available on the site:
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