HERNANDEZ
FAMILY
TBI ENT.
OUR VISION
Our vision is to advocate, educate and accommodate for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) survivors. TBI survivors deserve a lifestyle that is full of purpose, grace, and beauty. This will benefit survivors of TBI and their families/caregivers, to restore hope, joy and dignity through various means.
OUR STORY
Christmas Day 2008 changed the Hernandez family’s life in a most profound way. We received a call from a good Samaritan notifying us that our oldest son Matthew, his wife Mary, and their boys Zion and Levi had been in a serious accident and Matthew was fighting for his life! As news quickly spread, many friends and family rushed to USC Medical Center to pray and help in every way possible. Matthew was in ICU for 6 weeks. He was diagnosed with severe traumatic brain injury, among other injuries. Due to insurance restrictions, he was home 10 months later! We were told that Matthew’s healing progress had reached its peak. He was completely dependent for all daily living activity at that point. In other words, Matthew could not do anything on his own and required 24/7 care. We had to feed, dress, bathe, groom, toilet, walk and transfer Matthew from bed to wheelchair, to rocker, to restroom. We, as a family, were not prepared for what was to come the following year! So often, we felt as though we were navigating through, a storm without a sail. There was very little TBI-specific help, especially once Matthew was released from the hospital.
A DEFINING MOMENT
It became clear that Matthew’s accident was unto a greater purpose. We, as a family, began discussions to find answers and push beyond limits. We quickly discovered that there was little help for TBI survivors and families in California, particularly in our region. While Matthew experienced numerous, miraculous breakthroughs, we could not help but wonder about other survivors. In 2011, we decided to pursue that purpose. It became evident that someone needed to be a voice for advancing recovery, residual care & research.