This year marks the 10th anniversary of Ryan L'Homme passing away. He was one of Steve's best friends from high school, and although I only knew him for four months of his life, somehow our lives have been very intertwined and there's a lot I've learned from him and his family which I want to share in this post.
 |
| Senior year of high school visiting FSU- Ryan is on the very left |
 |
| Freshman year at FSU- Ryan is on the very left and very right.. |
I remember Steve's dad flying up with Ryan's parents to Tallahassee as soon as they heard the news that first night. I remember sitting in the hospital for a few days watching his close friends and family go through great suffering. We all prayed that he would recover quickly from this. To our loss Ryan did not recover and he passed away three days later.
I don't have a lot of memories with Ryan and can't say that I miss certain things about him because I did not know him for very long. I wish I had gotten to spend more time with him and gotten to know him better. But I know that because I knew him my life took a very different direction twice- and I'm glad and thankful I have gotten to know his sister and family well over the years.
 |
| Ryan's parents- Mr. and Ms. L'Homme on the right for a ceremony in Tallahassee |
Mr. and Mrs. L'Homme stayed closed to us through the years, and were there on our wedding day and the wedding of all of Ryan's close friends. At the time I had very little understanding of the mixed joy and pain of watching us get married, knowing Ryan would never get to experience any of those things. I remember her being at my baby shower when we were expecting Andrew and her giving me some FSU gear for our baby in Ryan's memory. She said 'I know Ryan would want him to have these' with teary eyes. And looking back I really wish I would've had more compassion and gratitude to her for being there despite that it was a very difficult place for her to be.
In 2008 after Andrew passed away, Steve and I started attending a parent bereavment group here in Tampa. We were very nervous to go initially, and much to our surprise at our first meeting we ran into Mr. L'Homme there. We had no idea he attended those meetings and were surprised that out of all the bereavement groups we chose the same one. We knew that we had a bond in a different level than most other parents.
I remember at checking in we were asked to write down the names of our children and the cause of death. Mr. L'Homme had written 'Ryan L'Homme- brain injury'. Ummm I had never been asked to write down the cause of the death of my child an 'lack of oxygen to the brain' was to long to write in there. 'Andrew Briggs- brain injury' seemed just fine.
Mrs. L'Homme and I had the great opportunity to graduate together from the University of Tampa in December 2008. Even though I didn't get to graduate with Ryan as I would've liked, I find it funny that we happened to finish our school at the same time and got to walk down the aisle that day. We both had been going to school on and off for years and did not purposedly plan on graduating together.
 |
| Graduating from University of Tampa |
Mrs. L'Homme contacted past recipients of the award to follow up on how they were doing. One of them responded with a very touching letter which I copied below. This young man is in medical school and was able to detect a brain bleed on a 6 year old- as he now pays extra attention to brain injuries knowing what happened to Ryan.
I've heard of many ways Ryan touched other people's life. Mrs. L'Homme forwarded me a letter from an organ recipient a couple of years ago (Ryan was an organ donor) who sent her a picture of his child I believe. This letter is just another example of how the Lord is still using his life for good.
I know God had a very special purpose for Ryan's life and death, but certainly wishing he was still here on this side of heaven.
I plan on posting pictures and writing about our weekend in FSU- lots to write about! I don't think I'll get a chance this weekend but hopefully next week.
Tommy Pitts October 10 at 12:04pm Report
Good morning Mrs. L'Homme it is great to hear from you!
I hope all is well with you and the family. I truly appreciate your efforts to locate me to extend me this invitation. I have been in Puerto Rico for the past two years in medical school. I am currently in my third year and am hoping to specialize in Emergency Medicine. I find it ironic to have received this message from you because recently Ryan has been on my mind quite a bit to be honest. I am still very good friends with Joel Medgebow the first recipent of Ryan's scholarship and we were talking about him the other day. We spoke about our time at FSU and our most memorable nd special experiences and we both seemed to say at the same time that the most memorable and humbling experience was receiving this award. We wanted to make sure that we were doing things that both your family and Ryan would be proud of make us worthy of this honor (Joel has just graduated from Law school and passed his bar exam). Apart from this conversation I had a moment where I believe Ryan was with me in the hospital just about a week ago. I was in the pediatric Emergency room and managed a trauma involving a 6 year old by who had a television and chest fall on his head, he appeared ok and his CT was negative. I passed a light into his eye and it did not constrict indicating a bleed. My intern didn't pay much attention to me b/c i'm a student and there was a negative CT he also said that he felt the pupil was reactive, he even started a discharge note. At that moment I thought about Ryan, and I knew how disappointed he would be if I didn't stand my ground as he would have done....If I didn't learn from him and the way he was. I feveriously documented my findings and my attending took them very seriously. The CT was repeated and there was a slow venous bleed indicating a epidural hematoma which the initial CT didn't capture at that moment. He was transferred to neurosurgery and his life was saved. When I heard about this I went to the hospital chapel and prayed. I told God about Ryan as I had many times before and thanked him for this sign. You see Mrs. L'Homme, Ryan saved that child's life. After receiving Ryan's award I always paid extra attention in the type of injury which Ryan sustained and have looked for ways to optimize the management of these injuries. If it is possible that anything good may have come from Ryan's accident, it would be the lessons that he has left each and everyone of us. For me it was how to be a good Brother, a good man, to remind me to stay the course and do what he would've done. I don't think I would've been as persistent if it wasn't for Ryan, he guided me that day and I will never forget that experience. Even tough we are suffering at this time remembering his loss, I experienced a moment of joy knowing that is was him who saved the life of this child.
I'm sorry for the length of this message but as I mentioned, he walked with me that day and I will always be honored to and humbled to be his brother and the recipient of the scholarship that bears his name.
I'm going to look into flights and see if I can make it to Tallahasse.
You, Ryan, and your entire family has been, is currently, and will always be in my thoughts and prayers.
Have a beautiful day,
Tom Pitts
