Boy, 10, collapses in agony on dream trip as parents face uncertain future

18 February 2024 , 07:00

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Riker's parents say they don't know what kind of care he will need when he wakes up (Image: gofundme)

A young boy's 10th birthday trip to New York turned into a nightmare when he collapsed suddenly and was left fighting for his life.

Riker Stippick was enjoying his special trip, which included watching the Broadway musical Hamilton and eating his first slice of NYC pizza. His dad, David Stippick, told FOX 7: "Bless his sweet little heart, he wanted to go to the Weehawken dueling ground where Aaron Burr and Hamilton had their duel."

The family were having a great time on the dream trip until they visited the World Trade Center memorial on Monday (February 5). David said: "Your kid is happy and healthy and 10, you kind of assume they're going to stay that way."

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Riker Stippick had wanted to go to the Weehawken dueling ground where Aaron Burr and Hamilton had their duel (gofundme)

But things deteriorated quickly after Riker complained of a headache. David recalled: "There's a building over there that we walked through and as soon as we walked through that building he said, 'Oh, I have a really bad headache. This is the worst headache I've ever had'."

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Just seconds later, Riker vomited and lay down near a bench. David describes Riker making a sound "like a shriek of pain". He was rushed to hospital where doctors put him into an induced coma.

Doctors told his shocked parents that Riker may have arteriovenous malformation, which is an abnormal connection between his arteries and veins, and that this could have caused a bleed in his brain or spinal cord. His severe pain may have been caused by an aneurysm, medics said.

Riker's family are praying he will wake up (gofundme)

Brain surgeons drilled into the 10-year-old's skull to drain blood and fluid and remove clotting in a tense operation. But David explained: "We don't know the genuine hope of if and when he does come out of this, what kind of therapies or treatments are going to be needed down the line."

Doctors are waiting to do an MRI before they can give Riker's parents a full diagnosis and he must be stable enough to cope without his tubes and machines before that can happen. "We never expected it to be our reality, but it is," said David.

In the meantime the family's community has rallied around them, their church's lead pastor at Peace of Christ Church opened a GoFundMe campaign that has so far raised $120,597. "I don't have the words to say thank you to everybody outside the words thank you," said Stippick.

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