Using tragedy to make good…

The Williams Family created the Dylan Williams Forever an All Star Foundation. It’s in loving memory of their son Dylan, who tragically died in 2013 from sudden cardiac arrest while playing baseball. At the time, Dylan was only 8 years old. During an All Star practice, he was accidently struck in the neck area by a baseball. The blunt force of the ball caused the rhythm of his heart to become distorted and he went into immediate cardiac arrest. When he collapsed on the field, coaches and parents started CPR and called 911. But by the time the emergency responders arrived, it was too late. At the time of the accident occurred, there was no AED at the ballpark where Dylan was practicing. An AED, or automated external defibrillator, is a portable device that checks for the heart rhythm and can send an electronic shock to the heart to try and restore the normal rhythm and also assist in directing the CPR process. What the Williams’ family knows now, and what everyone really needs to know, is that having an AED at the playing field that day, would have greatly helped Dylan’s chances for survival. Nearly 3 million kids play baseball or softball each year, yet mostly due to cost, many non-profit youth leagues or community ball parks are not able to be equipped with an AED. Dylan Williams Forever an All Star Foundation was created to promote awareness of the importance of CPR training and to raise money to donate AEDs to youth ballparks & athletic fields.

To date, the foundation has donated a total of 81 AEDs in Indiana, Ohio, Virginia and North Carolina.

The Williams’ family created this foundation, so that no one would ever forget Dylan. They are on a mission and determined to take action to help protect other young ball players in their community and other communities.