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But the end came Saturday afternoon when Michael
couldn’t rebound from surgery performed the day before to correct problems
with a central line attached to his heart. Beth said she was five minutes away from doing some
Easter shopping for her 4-year-old son, Anthony, when she received the call from
the hospital staff that Michael’s situation had deteriorated. Although she and John had been through this drill
before, Beth said she knew this time it was different.
John was on his way, and Michael held on just long enough for his father
to arrive and say “I love you” one last time. “My head tells me he’s no longer hurting, but my
heart has never felt such pain,” said Beth, who doubts she’ll ever be able
to make sense of the plight dealt to her son. “He’s at peace now, but it’s really sad to lose
him,” said Michael’s aunt, Marla Isaacs. Beth said Michael just had been accepted into an OI
experimental treatment program at Shriners Hospital. Although time ran out for Michael, his parents want to offer
hope to other children suffering from the disease. On Aug. 5, which would have been Michael’s first
birthday, the Schultzes are planning a golf outing to raise money for OI
research. Sports celebrities have
been invited to the event Michael’s parents began organizing six months ago.
Beth said they’d like to make the golf benefit an annual event. They also plan to turn the Baby Miracle Michael Fund,
established in November at Harris Bank in Naperville, into a memorial fund. “Hopefully, with what we learned through Michael,
someone else won’t have to go through what he did,” Beth said. While Michael’s family mourns his loss, they also
celebrate the gift he gave them. “He has changed my life forever, and a lot of
people’s lives,” Beth said. “People
take things for granted. They take
their children for granted. They
take life for granted. Michael made
us look at our lives and realize what’s important.” Visitation will be held from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m.
Wednesday at Friedrich-Jones Funeral Home, followed by an 11 a.m. Mass of
the Angels at St. Peter and Paul Church.
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