I have some tragic news to report.

Five years ago I told the story of Liam to DU and received all kinds of love and support from the community here, sadly I am going to have to ask for your support once again.

Liam passed away over the weekend at the age of five.

I can't even begin to describe the pain the family is going through right now. Liam was like a son to me, he lived with me for a year and I played a major role in helping to raise him. Liam and his mother moved out a few years ago but we have remained not just friends but family. I have continued to care for Liam, he was literally the most important person in the world to me and I can't even imagine what life is going to be like without him.

Liam lived a challenging life but he managed to stay happy through most of it despite the enormous obstacles he faced. Liam was only six weeks old when he suffered a traumatic brain injury at the hands of an abusive "father". Liam nearly died when he was an infant, but he managed to hang in there and he made a pretty miraculous recovery. His brain injury prevented him from ever learning how to walk or talk, but it did not prevent him from showing everybody how much he loved them. Liam was filled with laughter and smiles, he loved to give kisses, and while he never learned to talk he did learn to hum along with songs and he sang to us regularly.

Last year Liam's little sister Autumn was born and as she started to learn new things he would follow suit. Once she learned to stand he started to stand up on his own, Autumn was helping to teach him new things in a way no adult could ever do and we were totally thrilled with the progress he was making.

Everything seemed fine, and then Friday night he went to bed and he never woke up again the next morning.

The medical examiners have not completed their report yet so I can't say anything about the cause of death, but I am convinced that it is related to the brain injury that Liam suffered as an infant. There is a possibility that murder charges could be filed against the monster that assaulted him but we have to be able to prove that the death was related to the brain injury so charges will be dependent on how conclusive the medical examiner's report is.

No matter what happens however, the loss of Liam has had a devastating impact on Liam's mother and his new father Brandon, a person who has shown Liam an enormous amount of love ever since he came into his life. Brandon served as a Personal Care Assistant for Liam and a very large chunk of the family income came from the PCA hours that he received. Not only has the family lost a child, but they lost half their income as well and are now trying to figure out how they will be able to keep their home.

I have never asked for donations on DU before but this time I need help. If anyone can afford to donate please follow the link to the GoFundMe page I have provided below. I understand that many people can't afford a donation themselves, but if you could please share the link with anyone who might be able to help it would be very much appreciated.

Thank you all in advance for your support during this very difficult time.

http://www.gofundme.com/x5wvbc9s