After suffering a stroke, undergoing surgery and spending nearly a month in a Nebraska rehabilitation facility, 16-year-old Blake Ephraim returned home Friday, Dec. 6. Excited to see the friends and the community who prayed for her, raised money for medical bills and provided support for her family, Blake and her mother, Lisa Wilcox, planned to visit her school and her religious community.
First, Blake surprised her Olathe South high school cheerleading squad during their last practice before competition. Also on the schedule was a visit to Congregation Beth Torah.
When Blake walked into the Beth Torah sanctuary Sunday morning during family worship, the congregation stopped with prayers and stood to welcome Blake with the joyous singing of Shalom Aleichem (peace be upon you). Smiling ear-to-ear, Blake and her mother sat in the fourth row. Throughout the service, friends migrated to be close to the teenager.
Following worship, Blake stayed to visit for several hours. Seen throughout the building, everyone was wearing blue #TeamBlake/BEStrong (BE for Blake Ephraim) bracelets. Blake’s friends, from all backgrounds, joined together to sell the bracelets in order to raise money to help with medical bills.
Rabbi Rebecca Reice, who sat with Blake in the ulam (lobby) said: “She spoke slowly, and she has an arduous journey ahead of her. But it was an amazing reunion.”
While at Beth Torah, Blake’s older brother, Alex came in from Lawrence, where he is a student at KU, to surprise his sister.
The congregation sponsored several activities in response to requests from the family for support. For two weeks, every hour of every day, members took turns praying for a refuah shlema, a full and complete recovery. Members signed up to provide meals for the family; a member who owns a cleaning company volunteered to clean their house during the holiday season; rabbis visited the family often and many volunteers supported Blake’s sixth-grade sister Chloe.
The family hopes that Blake will return to school in January following surgery to replace the section of her skull that was removed during her immediate recovery from the stroke. Blake will continue outpatient therapy at a local hospital.
To follow Blake’s road to recovery, join Caring Bridge at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/blakeephraim.
