A hospital stay can be distressing—and boring—for anyone, but children may be especially stressed by the limitations of confinement. A Newcomerstown couple, Bridget and Josh Britton, have devised a way to help kids pass the time during treatment while also serving as a memorial to their deceased young son, Jaxon. Jaxon’s Bricks for Bravery, launched in April of this year, memorializes their child who died in November 2024 at just 5 years old.
Bridget Britton is adamant that children are more than their illness, and her son’s brief life is a prime example.
“Jaxon was born with a congenital heart defect. He had two open heart surgeries, one of which when he was three months old and then another in June of 2024 before he passed in November. He was in the hospital for probably like 100 days.”
Jaxon additionally carried a gene mutation which allowed for other complications to interfere in his recovery. “In his first couple of years, he would get sick pretty easily in terms of respiratory infections that would knock him down more quickly than other kids.” Such difficulties meant more time in hospital beds, which, as it turned out, was a real challenge for this active child.
“We did everything with him,” Britton said. “We skied, we went on vacations, we did everything. He lived life to the fullest. People hear stories like this and think he must have had a poor quality of life and that’s absolutely not the case. He was very much a traditional child with interests and a lot of activity.”
After a bit of an initial developmental delay, Jaxon quickly caught up with his peers and was ready for preschool by age 3. “He was just the smartest kid,” said Britton. “He was so smart, so talkative, so inquisitive, always with something to stay and big stories to tell. He was so full of life and had so much life to live ahead of him.”
Jaxon Britton with one of his beloved LEGO sets.Submitted
To the overwhelming grief of his parents and the many who came to know him, Jaxon contracted a viral infection after recovering from a second open heart surgery and was unable to win this final battle. “It was a big shock for all of us,” Britton said, “because he had so completely recovered from his second surgery. When they say kids bounce back faster, they aren’t kidding. He was up and walking within a day. It was a terrible shock. And to look at him, you’d never guess in a million years he had medical issues.”
Hospital caregivers know their young patients can get pretty bored as the hours drag by, and try to alleviate this by offering coloring books, plush toys and the like. But Jaxon, through his father, came to love putting together LEGO sets. “My husband was really into LEGO sets growing up,” Britton said. “My mother-in-law saved all those sets and after we shared those with Jaxon he just really loved them. He immediately caught on to following the instructions to put them together. He wasn’t really into some of the other things that were available but he loved putting together LEGO sets.”
After the difficult loss of their son, the Brittons looked for ways to keep his memory alive. When the idea came to seek donations of less expensive LEGO sets to distribute to children at Akron Children’s Hospital, it seemed like a natural way to memorialize their child. Launched in April, Jaxon’s Bricks for Bravery gave 356 LEGO sets to kids with health challenges in May. “We set the mark at sets priced at $25 or less.“ Britton said. “Of course, LEGO sets can run into hundreds of dollars, but those wouldn’t work anyway in a hospital environment.”
Donations of unopened LEGO sets can be dropped off at Akron Children’s Pediatrics offices in New Philadelphia at 1045 W High Ave., or mailed to the Brittons at 7993 Church Road, Newcomerstown, OH 43832. Search Facebook for Jaxon’s Bricks for Bravery for more information, and to learn the stories of families who have been touched by young Jaxon’s legacy.
