Family Stories

The Enderlein Family
The Veit Family
The Durkin Family
The Simpson Family
The Baker Family

The Enderlein Family
Mill Creek, WA

Mary-Clayton Enderlein and her husband Christoph had been married almost 10 years and had a nine-year old son named Kyle when the couple found out they were going to welcome their second child into the world. At nine months pregnant, Mary-Clayton was exposed to pertussis, a highly contagious, long-lasting respiratory infection, from an unvaccinated playmate of her son. Within a week, Mary-Clayton began having coughing fits. Mary-Clayton, a registered nurse, was familiar with pertussis and suspected that is what she had contracted; however, while she was waiting for test results confirming the disease, her water broke and she went into labor. Mary-Clayton gave birth to a healthy son named Colin; however, Colin quickly caught his mother’s case of pertussis, which is potentially life-threatening for infants.

One week later, Colin began having fits where he coughed uncontrollably for extended periods of time, gasping for air whenever he could. Additionally, Colin would cough so severely during the fits that his lips would turn blue and he would vomit. Realizing the severity of the situation, Mary-Clayton and her husband rushed Colin to the emergency room, where he was immediately admitted and diagnosed with pertussis. Colin spent the next 10 days in the intensive care unit, placed on continuous monitors and intravenous medications, having as many as 50 coughs in a row while he began receiving antibiotics.

Fortunately for the Enderleins, Colin recovered from the disease. However, even after he was discharged from the hospital, it took him several months to fully regain his strength. Additionally, he continued to cough throughout the first year of his life, and the disease left his immune system in a fragile state, causing him to develop several respiratory infections.

Even though Mary-Clayton’s experience with pertussis was more than 15 years ago, she is still active in her community, using her background in nursing to speak out about the dangers of pertussis and the importance of vaccination for all members of the family. Today, Mary-Clayton is back in school, as she is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Public Health, and Colin is a junior in high school.

From their experience, the family is more outspoken about the social responsibility of vaccination. Pertussis is a vaccine-preventable disease; however, infants who have not received all their immunizations against the disease are still vulnerable.

The Veit Family
New Orleans, LA

In January 2005, Chauntell had what she thought was just a cold, and then her newborn son got it too. Rather than getting better, over the next few weeks their conditions worsened. Chauntell eventually became too ill to care for Geoffrey, and his coughing spells became so severe that one day he stopped breathing. Chauntell and her husband rushed Geoffrey to the hospital. He was tested for a respiratory virus and sent home when the test came back negative.

Within a few days, Geoffrey’s condition worsened to the point that Chauntell and her husband rushed him back to the emergency room. This time the doctors determined that he had whooping cough, and, based on her symptoms, she had given it to him.

Geoffrey was admitted to the hospital and placed in isolation with no stimulation – any time he got excited or started to cry he would experience a coughing spell. He spent nine days in the hospital, causing Chauntell and her husband to “split shifts” to be with Geoffrey at the hospital and at home taking care of their two older sons, aged 12 and 10 at the time.

Upon returning home, Geoffrey continued his recovery; he still coughed for another two months, but it was not as severe as when he was in the hospital.

The Veit family realizes how lucky they were. Geoffrey was quickly diagnosed, received proper care and survived whooping cough. He has made a full recovery with no lasting effects from the disease. Geoffrey’s illness could not have been prevented because he was too young to receive his first dose of whooping cough vaccine. But he has since been vaccinated according to the recommended schedule.

When Geoffrey was born, there was very little that Chauntell could do to protect him from whooping cough. But now there is a whooping cough booster vaccine for adolescents and adults. It bolsters protection and prevents the spread of whooping cough to infants. Chauntell urges moms to vaccinate their babies according to the recommended childhood schedule, and hopes that anyone who will be around an infant gets the whooping cough booster vaccine for themselves.

The Durkin Family
Hatboro, PA

In late 2002, the Durkin family lost seven-week-old Colin to pertussis.

Colin was a full term, healthy, seven pound baby who gained weight every week. He was born on October 28, 2002, and weighed 10 pounds by December 3 rd, when his mom, Pamela, took him to the hospital for vomiting and a cry he had developed, which she felt indicated that he was in pain. After examination at the hospital, Colin was sent home.

On December 6 th, baby Colin, presenting the same symptoms from his visit a few days before, was admitted to the hospital with a diagnosis of pneumonia.

Colin rapidly declined and was rushed to CHOP in Philadelphia. On day three of his stay in the hospital, he was finally diagnosed with pertussis. He lived until December 14 th, when life support was terminated due to a hemorrhage in the brain. Colin was 47 days old. In just a few days he had gone from being a healthy, growing, beautiful baby boy to a baby with a fatal illness. 

During the time of Colin’s illness, there had been reports of pertussis in the area along with a description of symptoms parents should watch for. Pamela said her son had none of those symptoms.

After Colin died, Pamela reached out to experts to try and understand what had happened and how Colin could have gotten pertussis. As she put it, she was looking for guidance on the long and sorrowful trip they were making.

Colin was too young to be immunized and it’s not known where he contracted the disease. It could have been anyone’s baby, which is why Pamela continues to tell her family’s story. She wants no other families to experience such pain.

The Simpson Family
Davison, MI

Diana and Matt Simpson had been married for almost three years when they welcomed their first child into the world, a son named Nicholas. About three months before Nicholas was born, Diana developed a cough, which she originally believed to be no different from the average cough. However, Diana had contracted pertussis, a highly contagious, long-lasting respiratory infection. The illness persisted, and she continued to cough even after Nicholas was born.

When he was only three weeks old, Nicholas caught the illness, which is potentially life-threatening for infants. The disease caused him to cough uncontrollably for extended periods of time, gasping for air whenever he could. Diana quickly realized the severity of the situation, and immediately consulted her pediatrician, who advised her to speak with a specialist at Hurley Medical Center. After a few tests, it was confirmed that both mother and child were in fact dealing with pertussis. As if having a sick child wasn’t enough to deal with, the disease was quickly spread to Matt, as well as Nicholas’s grandmother. While the disease is not as dangerous for adults, having the cough still made it more challenging for Diana to care for her family, especially Nicholas. The coughing continued for weeks; however, thanks to the antibiotics they received and the care they provided, the family fortunately recovered from the disease. Today, Nicholas, Diana and the rest of the family are happy and healthy again.

Even though they are still cautious of dangerous diseases like pertussis, Mr. and Ms. Simpson continue to be active members of their community, participating in local neighborhood activities and garage sales in their spare time. Their experience has also kept the extended family as close as ever; Diana’s parents live on the same street as Ms. Simpson and her husband, and frequently pitch-in to take care of Nicholas when both parents are working. After receiving her undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan-Flint in 2000, Diana went back to school, and now works as a dental hygienist after receiving her graduate degree in 2003.

From their experience, the family has also learned the importance of vaccination. Pertussis is a vaccine-preventable disease; however, infants who have not received all their immunizations against the disease are still vulnerable.

The Baker Family
Alpharetta, GA

When baby boy Nelyn was born, his mom was in the middle of an undiagnosed and, what was worse, an untreated case of pertussis.

A couple of weeks before giving birth, Lynne Baker went to work a healthy pregnant woman and came home infected with pertussis, or whooping cough. Neither Lynne nor her husband knew that pertussis was making the rounds.

The day Nelyn was born, Lynne started coughing. A week later, she returned to see the doctor but remained undiagnosed. Everyone assumed it was a cold or perhaps a reaction to a drug given just before delivery.

After five days had passed, Lynne was back at the doctor’s office and at that time, she was given antibiotics. Four days after this, Nelyn became symptomatic and the next morning, he was taken in to see his pediatrician. The pediatrician called an ambulance and Nelyn was taken to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta's Scottish Rite Hospital, the intensive care unit.

At sunrise the next day, baby boy Nelyn died.

The Bakers didn’t find out until several days later that Nelyn had died from pertussis. Several of the more than 100 family and friends who came to say goodbye to Nelyn also became infected with pertussis.

Lynne and her husband Phil shared their story in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in September, 2004, because they hope that by doing so, others will become aware of this disease and take action to protect themselves and their loved ones.

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Important disclaimer: The information on pkids.org is for educational purposes only and should not be considered to be medical advice. It is not meant to replace the advice of the physician who cares for your child. All medical advice and information should be considered to be incomplete without a physical exam, which is not possible without a visit to your doctor.