Earlier this year, UK toddler Alfie Evans passed away after NHS hospitals essentially removed all options and choices from his parents. Now, his parents are fighting to make sure it never happens to another family.
Alfie was believed to have encephalomyopathic mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome, and had been placed on life support after catching two chest infections in the hospital. He was said to be in a “semi-vegetative state,” but no official diagnosis had been made as to what was causing his seizures and illness. Doctors believed medical care for Alfie would therefore be futile, and wanted to remove him from life support. His parents, Thomas Evans and Kate James, refused, and thus a months-long court battle begun. Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust spent over $188,000 to kill Alfie Evans, even though the Evans family raised money for to provide for Alfie’s care, found air ambulance companies willing to transport him to another facility, and a Vatican hospital, Bambino Jesu, willing to take and treat him.
READ: Shock: UK hospital spent over $188,000 on legal counsel to Alfie Evans
Courts unfortunately ruled against them, and decided that Alfie should have his life support removed. His doctors had predicted that he would die within minutes; instead, he breathed on his own for days and fought for his life, even as the hospital cruelly deprived him of food, water, and oxygen for a time. On April 28th, days after his life support was removed, the Evans family announced that Alfie had passed away.
This month, Evans and James announced that they have created a foundation in Alfie’s name as they received an award in Italy. Giorgia Meloni presented them the award for “a priceless example in defence of the value of life,” and Evans showed emotion as he spoke about their plans. “Soon, we would like to open a foundation to honour his name,” he said. “This will also be possible thanks to the precious collaboration we have with Steadfast with the aim to continue to fight against euthanasia. It is also in our plans to present a bill to the attention of the British Parliament to try to change the status quo. We will no longer allow what has happened to us to happen to others. We will help families who will fight for the lives of their loved ones.”
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“I am here to ask you to not stop fighting for the value of life, in memory of Alfie and in the name of all those who, every day, before and after him, will face those who believe that death is the only ‘best interest’,” he added.
In a Facebook post, Evans and James spoke of their love for Alfie and of their new mission. “In England when there is no treatment for a disease they give up and give no hope for the families, in this hospital they give families hope,courage,love and protection,” Evans wrote, adding, “We can’t wait to make Alfie’s name a huge legacy.”
