 |
| Silas Edenfield, 4 saying goodbye to Silas the loggerhead sea turtle |
On Saturday April 27th
two loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta
Caretta) named Silas and Chatham headed for the hills or the seas in this
case. The Georgia Sea Turtle Center released the sea turtles on Tybee Island,
Georgia. Both turtles at the time before release were being treated for
cold-stunning, where turtles fall ill from instant exposure to cold water. However,
how Silas got his name is a different story and an inspirational one to say the
least.
Silas the loggerhead sea turtle received his name from a four year cancer patient, Silas Edenfield. At just a young age his parents noticed that his belly was abnormally shaped leading to the diagnoses of liver cancer at just the age of three. During the past year Silas has been fighting for his life battling cancer by undergoing numerous treatments and surgeries. Silas fell in love with loggerhead sea turtles when he watched a popular kid’s show called “Go Diego Go” where they featured the turtle. Since then his mother and father reported watching the same episode “over a hundred times”. He has also accumulated several stuffed loggerhead turtles toys. Silas’s love for the sea creature never went unnoticed and eventually spread. When hearing about the news in the community the Georgia Turtle Center then honored the family by naming a loggerhead sea turtle after the cancer patient.
At first it was thought that Silas Edenfield would not be able to make it out to where the turtle was being release because his conditions were slowly deteriorating. However, on Saturday morning due the enormous support from the community Silas was feeling well enough to make it to the beach and was even flown from Vidalia to Tybee on a private plane offered by a generous donor. During the release the rules are not to touch the sea turtles although in this special case Silas got to say goodbye to the loggerhead turtle that was named after him by touching the shell and seeing the turtle up close. The passion that Silas Edenfield shows for sea turtles at such a young age is extremely inspirational. He is a hero and a brave young man in many people's eyes.
Silas the loggerhead sea turtle received his name from a four year cancer patient, Silas Edenfield. At just a young age his parents noticed that his belly was abnormally shaped leading to the diagnoses of liver cancer at just the age of three. During the past year Silas has been fighting for his life battling cancer by undergoing numerous treatments and surgeries. Silas fell in love with loggerhead sea turtles when he watched a popular kid’s show called “Go Diego Go” where they featured the turtle. Since then his mother and father reported watching the same episode “over a hundred times”. He has also accumulated several stuffed loggerhead turtles toys. Silas’s love for the sea creature never went unnoticed and eventually spread. When hearing about the news in the community the Georgia Turtle Center then honored the family by naming a loggerhead sea turtle after the cancer patient.
At first it was thought that Silas Edenfield would not be able to make it out to where the turtle was being release because his conditions were slowly deteriorating. However, on Saturday morning due the enormous support from the community Silas was feeling well enough to make it to the beach and was even flown from Vidalia to Tybee on a private plane offered by a generous donor. During the release the rules are not to touch the sea turtles although in this special case Silas got to say goodbye to the loggerhead turtle that was named after him by touching the shell and seeing the turtle up close. The passion that Silas Edenfield shows for sea turtles at such a young age is extremely inspirational. He is a hero and a brave young man in many people's eyes.
Sources:
Chelsea Taylor
College of Charleston
2 comments:
It was definitely hard not to shed a tear while reading/writing about this article! Tybee Island is also pretty close to my hometown of Beaufort, SC.
So nice to see people coming together to help others, both human and animal.
Post a Comment