Asher Sullivan, the storm injured son of schools director, has died: 'We are broken-hearted'

Asher Sullivan, the storm-injured son of Rutherford County Schools Director James "Jimmy" Sullivan, died Saturday, his father announced.

"Asher officially passed away (Saturday) afternoon around 1:20 pm. I say officially because of the events of the last 36 hours," Sullivan posted late Saturday night.

Asher had been at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt since May 8. The 10-year-old boy was critically injured that date after being sucked into a storm drain. Before he was injured, Asher was playing with other kids in the water that had accumulated in the street while neighbors gathered to begin the cleanup process after severe storms moved through Middle Tennessee. He somehow "got caught in the storm drain and was swept under the neighborhood streets," Sullivan previously wrote on social media.

"Asher had one brain stem reflex remaining the last few days that kept him from officially being declared brain dead/deceased," Sullivan said in his Saturday night post. "The doctors had told us that they didn’t expect that reflex to go away, but that further improvement beyond maybe a finger moving was not possible. That left Kaycee and I with an impossible decision that deep down we knew we wouldn’t make.

'We don't expect Asher to recover': Rutherford schools director provides update on son injured in Tennessee storms

"We asked for an additional MRI and that was conducted late Thursday. Kaycee and I met with the neurologists a few rooms away from Asher around 11 yesterday (Friday) morning to have an in-depth discussion. The MRI actually showed further progression of brain damage from five days earlier.

"While we were away, Asher’s vitals crashed. His pulse and blood pressure became erratic, he lost the ability to control temperature, and the eye response ceased.

"Our sweet boy did what Asher has always done, he put others first. No longer did Kaycee and I have to make an impossible decision. Instead, he made it for us while we were out of the room. The doctors performed two extremely in-depth tests that Kaycee and I watched separated by 24 hours. No parent should have to watch this, but we knew for our hearts, we had to. The results showed us what we already knew, that our sweet Asher was already gone.

"We are broken-hearted, mad, and every other emotion at the same time.

"We are still at Vanderbilt as we’ve decided to have Asher bring life to others as an organ donor. He remains on life support (because) of that decision for a few days. It’s 100% an 'Asher' type thing to do in continuing to be selfless. He will have an honor walk at the hospital in the next few days and be celebrated as he is, a hero!"

'Asher needs a miracle': Middle Tennessee prayer vigil sees 500+ after storm injures boy

The youngest son of the schools director, Sullivan has made several social media posts about what happened to Asher and the serious brain injuries the boy had as the child struggled to breathe on his own. Sullivan had posted May 10 that doctor told the parents that Asher would not survive the injuries after the boy showed no signs of brain activity and was not breathing on his own.

Asher had attended Christiana Elementary School on the southside of Rutherford. Many from the school joined a prayer vigil of over 500 people for the boy and his family the day after the storm in front of the Rutherford County Schools central office. Students, teachers, parents and young children gathered on sidewalks, the parking lot, landscaped grassy areas and under shade trees to pray and sing, "Amazing Grace."

Others showed support by wearing more than 6,000 sports helmet stickers with an "A" for Asher on a star-like logo for Vanderbilt, one of the boy's favorite baseball teams. The stickers were donated to area teams by Jessica Hood, owner of JM Embroidery & More in Rockvale.

Rutherford County Mayor Joe Carr offered the following comment about Asher's death.

"It's with deep sorrow that we learned of Asher Sullivan's passing," Carr said. "On behalf of the entire county, we lift up the Sullivan family in prayer because words at this time are inadequate to describe our sorry, but we support them and embrace them as a vital part of this community."

Asher is one of two boys from Rutherford County who died at the Vanderbilt children's hospital this week. He was on the same floor as 11-year-old Yousuf Ayesh, who was unable to survive an incurable brain cancer the final six months of his life. Yousuf was a fifth-grader at Murfreesboro's Black Fox Elementary School.

Sullivan posted on social media about grieving with Yousuf's father.

"Yousuf was down the hall from us this week at Vandy," Sullivan wrote in a Tuesday night post. "His dad and I shared a devastating hug (Tuesday morning) that only the two of us can understand. Please help his family if you can."

Fathers share grief: Dads of Asher Sullivan, Yousuf Ayesh shared 'devastating hug' in hospital, post reveals

Reach reporter Scott Broden with news tips or questions by emailing him at sbroden@dnj.com. To support his work with The Daily News Journal, sign up for a digital subscription.

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: Asher Sullivan, the storm injured son of schools director, has died