The father of Lucy Nash wrote on a social media post Tuesday afternoon that his daughter has irreversible loss of brain function and her organs will be donated.
“Our baby, our Lucy, found this was the path she must take,” Ryan Nash wrote. “Late Saturday night, a sudden change in Lucy’s vitals caused a flurry of activity and tearful encouragement and prayers from her parents, all four of us, surrounding her bed. Since then, Lucy’s signs of being in control of her body have faded away. Her heart beats, medications keep her blood pressure steady to help her body. Her chest rises and falls, as a ventilator chooses every breath. Her eyes, bright blue, friendly and so compassionate, are fixed and unchanging under her sleeping eyelids.”
(The Hendersonian received permission from a family member to use information written from Ryan Nash’s Facebook page.)
Ryan Nash wrote that Lucy is not yet done, though.
“… Lucy’s no longer alive, yet her heart beats, and her lungs take in air. Over the next few days Lucy’s body will be examined and cared for, and the organs and tissues she no longer needs will be given to help as many people as possible. Keeping her heart going maximizes the good she can do. All she ever wanted to do was good.”
A GoFundMe account has been set up by Lucy’s aunt, Johnance Strueh, to help defray medical costs for the family. To find it, go to gofundme.com and search #pinkiesupforlucy.
It was posted on Facebook that a fund has been set up at Field & Main bank for those who would like to donate to help cover medical and other expenses.
The PCMA will honor Lucy, a ball player, and her family at 6 p.m. Thursday at the fields on Lincoln Avenue. “Lucy left her mark at PCMA by always having a smile and wearing her pink helmet,” said the announcement. At the gathering, pink ribbons will be tied to the fence representing all the hearts she touched, said the announcement.
Lucy, who was in the fourth grade at Cairo Elementary School, collapsed at recess after her heart stopped beating on the first day of school last Wednesday, Aug. 7. According to information from her father’s Facebook feed, she was first taken to Deaconess Henderson, then to an Evansville hospital, before being lifeflighted to Riley’s Children’s Hospital, where she still remains on a ventilator.
Over the weekend, Lucy’s and her family’s plight were shared over social media and a movement to wear pink or paint a pinkie fingernail pink for Lucy gained steam. On Monday, thousands of students, teachers, staff, employees and others all over the county wore pink and posted their pictures with the hashtag #pinkiesupforlucy as a show of support.
Her father wrote: “Luciana Laine Nash, sister, lover, catcher, reader, cartwheeler, naturalist, singer, LEGO master builder, child of god, and friend of anyone, passed to the next place where hopefully Christ met her and experienced a hug that truly changes lives.”
To read more and offer condolences, go to #pinkiesupforlucy or #PinkiesUpForLucy on Facebook.
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The Hendersonian wishes to express our deep sorrow and extend condolences to the family of Lucy Nash and all those who know and love Lucy.
