Thomas Seller, Jr.
West10/Legacy Media
The memory and spirit of the late Daniel Brooks will once again shine alongside the custom rides, smiles and donations.
The 15th Annual Antique Car, Truck and Motorcycle Benefit will be hosted in Arlington by Brooks’ mother Kim, grandfather Clyde Sr. and uncle Clyde Jr. on Saturday, June 14 (with a rain date of June 21).
The brainchild of Clyde Sr., who is a member of a classic car club, the first show was held in 2011 to benefit medical expenses for his grandson battling lung issues. Since Daniel’s passing at the age of 23 on Feb. 8, 2013, the family has made a mission to keep the event going in his honor and to continue the spirit of giving to those in need of a transplant.
“We wanted it to mean something because Daniel went through so much,” Kim noted. “All the people who gave to Daniel, we didn’t want that to end. We wanted to give back to others the way they gave to Daniel. We’re keeping his name and memory alive through the transplant organization and the car shows.”
This year’s show will take place at 11171 Highway 64 in Arlington with gates opening at 10 a.m. It’s free to children under age of 12 and will have multiple car show categories with donations going to those in need or transplant recipients.
The team working behind the scenes are Kim, Daniel’s siblings Kimmora and Jimmy Gamble, grandparents Clyde and Beatrice, his aunt Tonya and her husband Tim C. Gordon, uncle Clyde Jr. and his wife Brennae and his cousin Dacari.
In his 23 years of life, those who knew Daniel said he left a major impact on their lives.
“He loved to eat although it would be so straight through him,” Uncle Clyde noted. “He loved macaroni and cheese — that was his favorite. It’s this one story that I love. I was in the hospital. I deal with Crohn’s Disease and he happened to be in the hospital at the same time. I was just getting back to eating, just some soft foods.
“So they offered me some jello, ‘You can have jello,’” he continued. “I ordered some jello and they were like, ‘Hey, Mr. Brooks, we’re sorry. There is no more jello. It’s a young guy on the third floor. He ordered all the jello.’ They knew him and they said, ‘His name is Daniel.’ ‘My nephew?’ I couldn’t get my jello that day. I was just getting back to eating. So I had to stick to ice.”
Daniel was no stranger to hospitals starting at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital at the age 3.
During a surgical procedure relating to a previous condition, Daniel aspirated. That left both of his lungs severely damaged and he was diagnosed with Bronchiectasis.
“Being malnourished and he could barely walk,” Kim noted were some of his challenges. “Because he had a short gut, food would go straight through him and he would have to go to the hospital because he couldn’t keep anything in him. He would have to go to the hospital to get IV fluid to get nutrients back in his body.”
By the age 10, Daniel’s pulmonary doctor, Glen Williams, told the family that his best chance for a long-term survival and a healthy life would be to undergo a bi-lateral lung transplant.
Through it all Daniel tried to manage a normal childhood. He collected fitted caps, played video games and enjoyed time with his family.
“He would be on his video games, he loved video games,” Kim recalled. “You could hear him talking. I would be like, ‘Is somebody in the room with you? Who is in there?’”
Bolts of pneumonia and a weak immune system didn’t keep Daniel from reaching the milestone of graduating from Bartlett High School in 2007.
By the time Daniel turned 19, Daniel wanted the transplant and a chance at a normal life. He was placed on the waiting list in August 2010.
Then in October to that year, Baptist Hospital called and told him they had a set of lungs for him.
After the surgery Daniel told his mom, ”It feels funny.”
Kim noted it was almost as if her son had to learn how to breathe all over again. Daniel had a new lease on life adding basketball and more outings to his routine. His younger brother and sister were so glad when he got home from the hospital as they had really missed him.
The highs and the lows, Daniels kept a cheerful disposition. Daniel did well for a couple of years but, in the winter of 2012, he got sick from an infection. His lungs were functioning well. Daniel was being monitored but he got multiple infections, started having chest pains and then his kidneys started to fail.
“He was tough,” Clyde Jr. said. “He had as many surgeries as how old he was. He took it like a soldier every time. You would never hear him complain about it.”
When Daniel passed the family grieved and faced a decision on keeping Daniel’s legacy alive through the car show.
“We started doing it to help with the medicine cost,” Clyde said. “There is only so much even with insurance, medicine is sky high. Even after Daniel passed it would just help other recipients with their meds. Even though it might just be enough for a month, that helps.”
Kim released the car show must go on when they laid her son to rest in 2013.
“It brings everybody together,” she noted. “Especially when they hear Daniel’s name. They want to be a part of that. Even at his funeral I thought it was going to be small because our church Grace Creek Baptist Church is so small. But there were cars lined up down the street. I was not expecting that.
“I didn’t know any of those people,” she continued. “Some of his doctors and nurses came. People that I worked with at previous jobs. You never know who you touch or who your child touches.”
Kim said the annual event continues to keep Daniel’s legacy in the forefront and to serve as a fundraiser to help other organ transplant recipient families who are struggling to raise money.
“There were a lot of different medications, doctor visits, and travel expenses,” Kim noted. “We wanted to help other transplant patients. I know firsthand how hard it is to pay all the bills. Donation and transplantation is a wonderful thing. If it were not for someone doing that, I would not have had those three extra years with my son Daniel.
The Daniel Brooks Transplant Foundation is turning 15 this year. The event that honors Daniel assists the Memphis Transplant Social Workers at Baptist Memorial Hospital. Two local transplant recipients receive the proceeds from the benefit every year with thousands of dollars awarded since 2013.
“You never know who you’ll meet that has had a transplant,” Clyde said. “They have become recipients from the Car Show and they become lifelong friends.”
There are currently more than 115,000 individuals on the national waiting list for organ transplants. Another name is added to the national transplant waiting list every 10 minutes. Sadly, 20 people will die everyday waiting from the lack of available organs for transplant. The Mid-South Transplant Foundation is the not-for-profit, federally designated Organ Procurement Organization (OPO) serving the 150-mile radius that surrounds the Memphis area including parts of western Tennessee, northern Mississippi, and eastern Arkansas. For more information or to register visit www.midsouthtrans
plant.org.
