High school homecoming dances are traditional events that happily herald a new school year. However, in one Illinois community, sadness and grief for a classmate gone much too soon cast a bleak pall over the typically fun get-together. Per People, Brennen Saele passed away on Saturday, September 19. It was the night of his high school's homecoming dance.
Videos by Wide Open Country
He had experienced a pain in his collarbone. Per the outlet, "His mom, Genesis Saele, took him to the hospital, where doctors found an aneurysm on an artery that ran up his neck and into his brain." When that aneurysm ruptured the following day, Brennen Saele tragically lost his life. He was 17 and a student at Lincoln-Way Central High School in New Lenox.
An exquisite sentence in his obituary jumps out: "Brennen loved deeply and loved hard."
Saele Had a Rare Medical Condition
The teen had Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. According to the Mayo Clinic, it's a condition that affects the body's connective tissues. There are many varieties of this syndrome; some of them can be pretty successfully "managed." But among the most serious and potentially "life-threatening" is vascular Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. That is reportedly what Brennen Saele had. It can cause "sudden ruptures."
Per his mother speaking to the New Lenox Patch, it was a lifelong condition he had. However, Brennen only learned he had it two years ago. Genesis Saele has the same rare condition. She shared, "I was the one who got tested first, and found out that I had it. It was 50/50 chance. He lived with it for 17 years, but didn't know he had it until 15."
"He Had To Watch What He Did"
Brennen needed to be extra cautious. Genesis Saele explained, Even doing everyday tasks could pose a significant risk. "He had to watch what he did—any jarring of the body, sneezing too hard, coughing too hard, hitting himself if he fell on the ground—it could rupture something inside of him, and he would never know until he was in pain."
Nevertheless, the young man would not meekly knuckle under to the condition. His mom said. "His exact words to me, when we told him, 'I'm living my life the way I want to live it....'" Now, in the midst of her bereavement, Genesis Saele is looking back and remembering this exceptional and beloved teen.
She sorrowfully shared this with the New Lenox Patch. "He was just a good soul. He was the best. I know a mom is going to brag on their child, but there is nothing that I could say about him that was a flaw or 'wrong' — he was just a bright soul."
Per People, Brennen Saele was not and will never be forgotten. "His classmates left homecoming to be with him when they heard the news, and the community honored him with tributes...."
