A young mother in east Idaho got a huge surprise from a Secret Santa and his elves recently when they heard her family is struggling.
Brooke, her husband Jacob, and their two young children, who live in Challis, had their lives turned upside down when Jacob began experiencing dizziness, weakness, and problems with depth perception a few months ago, East Idaho News reported on Thursday.
He was admitted to EIRMC in July and later transferred to the University of Utah Hospital where doctors eventually diagnosed him with encephalitis.
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, encephalitis is “inflammation of the active tissues of the brain caused by an infection or an autoimmune response. The inflammation causes the brain to swell, which can lead to headache, stiff neck, sensitivity to light, mental confusion and seizures,” the site reads.
“Encephalitis strikes 10–15 people per 100,000 each year, with more than 250,000 patients diagnosed in the last decade alone in the U.S.,” it noted.
Jacob has endured so many difficulties throughout his health journey, including being on a feeding tube and a ventilator, several infections, and being transferred to other hospitals.
He is now in Boise and his family visits him a few days each week. It is hard because Brooke does not have a reliable car to get them there.
However, Secret Santa told the outlet’s Nate Eaton to surprise her with the news that she can now go pick up a car that was chosen specifically for her. Eaton and his team made the surprise even more epic by arriving at her home in the East Idaho News chopper.
Video footage shows the moment Secret Santa’s helpers touched down in Brooke’s front yard.
“Oh, that’s really sweet,” she said while opening the first gift which appeared to be a check. When she opened the second box containing a toy car, the young mother at first did not realize what it meant.
When Eaton told her Secret Santa bought her a car, Brooke was overwhelmed and began crying. Eaton then showed her a photo of the Toyota Rav4 that was waiting for her to pick up, noting that all fees for it were paid.
“Thank you, I really appreciate it so much,” Brooke said through tears.
Social media users were quick to share their thoughts on the sweet surprise, one person writing, “I’ve known brooke since high school and I for one can say she is truly one of the sweetest person ever! I’m so glad she finally got some sort of break!”
“Thank you Secret Santa. She really needed this blessing. God, please give her husband’s doctors the wisdom to get him well and back home. Amen,” another user commented.
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