Parenting influencer Lindsay Dewey heartbreakingly shared the sorrowful news that her cherished 22-month-old son, Reed, passed away in February following a freak accident where an unfastened mirror crushed him. Dewey recounted the devastating event in her Instagram Stories, narrating how her little one had been amusing himself by attaching and detaching a suction cup bowl onto a mirror, back and forth. This playful tug-of-war with the mirror, fragile and unsuspecting, ultimately led to its downfall, crumbling onto Reed within the confines of their Idaho home.
Unbeknownst to Dewey, who had last glimpsed him engaged with magnetic tiles, the toddler had repurposed the bowl into a toy. At the time of the accident, the devoted mother of three was merely ten feet away, occupied in the kitchen preparing dinner. It wasn't until she heard the mirror's thunderous crash that she realized her son's perilous proximity.
Despite the mirror's formidable "heavy-duty" weight, Dewey, fueled by instinctual strength, managed to wrench it off Reed within a heart-stopping five seconds. "When it first occurred, I was utterly perplexed as to how it had happened... Our children couldn't possibly possess the strength to budge it, let alone pull it down upon themselves. The urgency to secure it never crossed our minds. Given its sturdy construction and placement, it seemed impossible for it to topple for no apparent reason," she penned. "But as I lifted it and leaned it back, I noticed his bowl adhered to it... I immediately comprehended the exact sequence of events."
Dewey emphasized her penchant for safety, with her home fortified with child locks on windows, doors, gates, outlets, and more, along with anchors for furniture like dressers and chests. The fateful mirror, which she usually stabilized with a chair, was momentarily unattended as they rearranged furniture to clean up after their dog's accident.
"A myriad of factors coalesced into a catastrophic perfect storm. In retrospect, it was a heart-wrenching, unforeseen accident that we can never undo," Dewey lamented.
Rushed to the hospital, Reed slipped into a coma due to his severe injuries. His mother detailed on Instagram how his pupils barely responded, his breathing was labored, and his brain function was severely compromised by swelling. Days later, doctors pronounced Reed brain dead, prompting Dewey to share that his organs were donated to five recipients.
"I keep telling myself, 'If he doesn't receive his miracle, he will become one.' This thought alone sustains me. Though his life couldn't be saved, he is now saving lives," Dewey captioned her emotional update on February 21.
"Our darkest day turned into the brightest day for someone else. For that, I am eternally grateful to our little hero baby. Reed Michael, you are someone's miracle – five little children's miracles, to be exact. I can't shake the thought of the families who received the best news of their lives, their answered prayers. Though this is profoundly unjust, we are immensely proud of you, baby," she continued.
In honor of Dewey's late son, a local clothing brand named Little Hunters Wife has launched a collection of t-shirts and sweatshirts under the "Remembering Reed" initiative. On March 7, the store announced that all profits from this line would be directly donated to Dewey and her husband, Eric.
