Skylar Hutto

Against all odds

Skylar was born on September 11, 2001 in Paducah, Kentucky. He was premature, born at 26 weeks, weighing only 1 lb 11oz. From the moment he entered the world, the odds were against him. He needed to be taken by Medevac to a different hospital, but the terror attacks on New York was about to cause all airspace to shut down nationwide. But right from the start, God's hand was on Skylar. He was the very last patient transported in Kentucky by helicopter before all flights were grounded. If he would have had to make that trip by ambulance, he would not have made it.

His mother, Shauna, did her very best for Skylar right from the start. She loved him with all her heart and when he was a year old, she made the heartbreaking and courageous decision to give him up for adoption, hoping his many needs could be better met. When Terri first met baby Skylar, he had been diagnosed as medically failure to thrive due to his substantial special needs. Right from the start, Skylar won her heart. His huge blue eyes, always alight with joy even when his body was hurting, and his beautiful gummy smile melted her immediately. It was daunting to think of trying to meet all of needs, but she felt God's hand guiding her straight to him.

Slowly, Skylar began to respond to medicines and treatments and began to thrive under the watchful eyes of the vast array of medical professionals who would always be a part of his life. Just before he turned 2, Skylar was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. Therapists, nurses and doctors quickly became part of the family. Terri, in turn, learned the language of medicine, sometimes talking in such medical detail that was full of acronyms and unpronounceable words that no one else could understand what the heck she was talking about. Skylar did not sleep well, so she and sometimes her sister, Sheri, would spend entire nights up with him, trying to calm and soothe him, never wanting him to be awake and alone.

This little boy was more than the sum total of his medical issues though, he was a bright light in the family, with sunshine in his smile and a way of touching your heart with a simple look. He was worth every sacrifice and then some, giving back a thousand times more than he was taking simply by being Skylar. He was a gift that never failed to deliver in pure love.

To absolutely everyone's surprise, Skylar went to school when he was 6 years old for about 3 years. Talk about beating the odds, the child no one thought would survive was now the teacher's pride and joy. It was at his school where he met his first girlfriend, Lily. Lily is a very special girl who would always hold a special place in his life. This first love turned out to be the first of many. He may never have talked or walked, but that boy could give lessons on getting girls to fall in love with you. If you ever had the pleasure of going to Walmart with him, you would accomplish exactly zero shopping. He was an absolute rock star, with people falling over themselves to come and see his amazing smile. Especially the ladies. And Skylar would never fail to deliver, flirting up a storm with all women, young, old and anything in between. Ladies were his joy and he was theirs.

Skylar loved going to the mall to people watch. He would absolutely drink in every detail about everyone that he saw. He loved hanging out at friends' houses and especially in pools. He was a true water baby, absolutely fearless and fully trusting in the pool. Skylar was also the perfect kid to take to the movies, oftentimes falling asleep minutes into the film and sleeping the entire way through. When he was small, he liked playing in his walker, but the jumper was his absolute favorite. When he was getting too big for it, they actually had to build an iron cage to make the jumper grow with him.

Skylar had so many visits to the ER that one time Terri left a toy and the staff just left it to the side with his name on it for Terri to pick up the next time he came in. Not only did Terri know all the doctors and nurses by name, she knew their vacation schedules, family stories, everything. Needless to say, even the security guards were family friends. Skylar was a forgiving patient, and even when he was getting an IV, he would still smile up at you while you poked him. His illnesses and emergencies caused a lot of last minute family reunions. Thousands of miles have been driven at the drop of a hat when things got bad. But no matter how badly the prognosis, he would pull through time after time.

One of Skylar's gifts was that he could communicate with a look what most people couldn't say with a thousand words. He loved his brothers dearly, and his cousins delighted him. His aunts, Sheri and Jeri were two of his rocks, right alongside his mom. Always there, always loving and treating him like a king. His nurses were his girls and cared for him both physically and emotionally without fail. His mom was his number 1. She was unceasingly, tirelessly there for him in every way. She was his protector, his champion, his mother and his best friend. Terri said that Skylar taught her how to love. In turn, she gave him her heart and a home filled with laughter and love.


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