Parents send their kids to university, often to locations where neither they nor their children know anyone, trusting that in serious emergencies, friends and the institution will support them until a parent can arrive. Jenessa West's son, Joey, studies at Alaska Pacific University in Anchorage, and last week he called her at 3 AM. Jenessa shared with us that he was
So Jenessa did what any mother does. She calmed Joey down and instructed him to contact his resident advisor, who "carried him down three flights of stairs, drove him to the ER, and stayed with him." While waiting for news from them, she desperately began looking for available flights to Alaska. That's when she recalled a mom she had connected with in a Facebook group called Grown and Flown Parents, who lived in Anchorage, close to her son's college.
She contacted that mother, Benita Washburn, who lived nearby and immediately offered assistance, taking the time to "ensure Joey got his prescription filled, provided him with a heating pad, other essentials, and bought him lunch!" She also sent a photo of Joey smiling and holding his bag of supplies to his worried mom. Jenessa said that image of her son's happy face "brought incredible relief to my anxious heart."
In an update, Jenessa reports that her son is recovering well. He was diagnosed with a pulled muscle that swelled so severely it caused his leg to lock. At the hospital, he received anti-inflammatory and pain medication, and he is now healing. Back on campus, Joey's resident advisor has moved him to the first floor with all the comforts from his third-floor room, and he will rest for a few days.
To her new friend, Jenessa says
Note: This account and the accompanying images were sourced from a post in the Grown and Flown Parents group and used with explicit permission from the original poster.
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