LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The Wards do not consider the moment Brazyl was hit as the worst moment of their lives. It was simply the moment everything changed.
“Nothing has been the same since," said Brandon Ward, Brazyl's father. "That night I was completely tested and that was my wake-up call. I say that was my resurrection because bringing her back to life was my resurrection because it gave me a whole new purpose.”
That new purpose began in the hospital, where Brazyl remained in a coma for two months. Although it was the most traumatic experience of their lives, what they learned in moving through it became their testimony.
“There were times I wanted to give up and there were times where I couldn’t stop crying and there were times where I had to hide but there were times I had to be brave as well because my family needed me," said Brandon.
The family leaned on each other as Brazyl fought to defy the odds. With the outpouring of outside support, Tiffany said it was difficult to stay in the darkness.
“What we had was a lot of support from the community and we did also see when we were there that not a lot of people had that same type of support that we were receiving," said Tiffany. "And they still had to take care of their bills and still go to work and do those things which keeps them away from their children.”
Even while still in need of support themselves, the Wards saw there was a need to help other families going through similar circumstances.
“We understand that it does take a village and the main objective for these children is for them to get better and they need their parents by their sides so if they have Las Vegas community supporting them then there’s no way that they can’t go up. They can have the same type of results as Brazyl," said Tiffany.
And now, nearly six years after Brazyl was hit, the Wards are launching DreamSafe Project - a nonprofit aimed at helping families dealing with traumatic events and spreading safety awareness.
“It’s a blessing to be able to be in a position to help others. To be able to use our story as a platform and for that to be the influence behind spreading safety awareness, for the CPR that was given to be, for that to be the story that gets people to be CPR certified. And then to teach people not to ever give up. That you can get through it, you can get stronger," said Brandon.
For turning their pain into purpose and for making Vegas a more beautiful place to be in the process, we want to recognize Tiffany and Brandon Ward as our Vegas Stronger Champions.
Vegas Stronger Champions is sponsored by Findlay Automotive.
