COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) — A Columbus couple saw their world crumble on 9/11 of 2022 when their young son suddenly died. They have since made it their mission to bless others as a way of honoring the legacy of their little boy.
Andy Elliston was born in the winter of 2019, but his personality was as radiant as summer sunshine.
"We had three-and-a-half beautiful years with him, and we are so thankful for that," said Andy's mother, Amber Elliston. "From the beginning, we knew that Andy was going to be a very special little boy. At 27 weeks pregnant, we found out he was going to have a complex heart condition."
That news only strengthened Amber and her husband George's resolve to be the best parents they could be for Andy. He was born at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta and was immediately transferred to the cardiac intensive care unit at Egleston Children's Hospital.
"Within the first two days of life, he had his first procedure," Amber recalled. "He had a stunt placed in, and he was moderately healthy for the time being. At about four months, he had his second procedure, and by six months, he had his open heart surgery."
However, Andy persevered. He pushed through the surgery and started to develop his own unique personality.
"Andy was bright," Amber said. "He loved his brother. They would play a lot. Andy was definitely very silly. He liked to hide. He would hide in plain sight and just giggle."
Andy was eventually diagnosed with autism. Then, suddenly on Sept. 10, 2022, he got terribly sick. The very next day, he was gone.
"It was very sudden and unexpected for us," Amber said. "It was by far the most difficult time for our family."
The past three years Amber and her husband George have tried to find meaningful ways to honor their son's short life. One way has been through encouraging friends, family, and anyone else to do random acts of kindness in Andy's memory.
Amber, along with the help of a friend, created a business card with the words "Andy's ABC's" on it. Andy loved the alphabet. A Facebook page was created to share Andy's story and to challenge people to randomly do something kind for someone else.
Amber would send others one of Andy's cards as a thank you. Amber said that they've been doing this for over two years now.
"We have met people from all over the world," Amber said. "Andy has touched lives in almost all 50 states."
Another way the Ellistons have chosen to honor Andy's memory is through sponsoring what they call "caregiver connections". Their journey showed them how invaluable caregivers can be to a family going through a health crisis.
Amber recently invited some folks who are serving as caregivers to enjoy a Saturday morning of crafting, assembling key chains, necklaces, and writing pens.
"I help myself kind of get out of depression by simply crafting in the evenings," Amber said. "I found it to be very therapeutic."
Those who turned out to craft thought so, too. Curtis Taylor brought his son Randy. Curtis said that Randy loves putting stuff together, so the crafting class was the perfect outlet for him. Curtis recognizes the good Amber is trying to do.
"When she goes out in public and sees somebody that's down, she gives them a pen or key chain to help cheer them up," Curtis said.
It's Amber's way of bringing a smile, just like her Andy used to do.
"I would hope that Andy would be very proud of us for not only sharing his love, but God's love with others as well," Amber said.
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