Meet Your Neighbor… Kim Watterson

By DONNA NICKEL

“I'm not a hero and I'm not a saint, I'm just a mother.” Meet Kim Watterson, a gregarious, hard-working, fun-loving wife and mother who quickly brushes off admiring comments about how well she copes with what life has sent her way.
Six years ago the Watterson's story sent chills through the hearts of local parents. In the span of a wintery weekend, daughter Ashleigh went from a healthy third grader, to a little girl with flu-like symptoms, to a critically ill, brain damaged child in need of constant care.
The immediate crisis is over. Kim and her family have settled into a daily life that is rarely routine. Besides being totally devoted to Ashleigh, Kim also heaps loads of love and attention on son Austin, making sure his life is as normal as possible under the circumstances. “It's something I don't even think twice about. I do what I'm supposed to do; I take care of my children.”
Born in New Castle, PA, Kim's family moved to Portage county when she was 14-years-old. A 1978 graduate of Southeast High School, Kim spent two years at a Newton Falls shoe before moving on to a shoe store in Boardman where she specialized in infant/children shoe sales.
She relocated to North Canton in 1985 to work for the Warehouse Club on Arlington Rd., then spent several years with the company transferring to the Pittsburgh area, Michigan and Chicago. When the Chicago store closed, she moved make home.
After a brief stint as an insurance company secretary, Kim was hired by the Wholesale Club on Dressler Rd. The company was taken over by Sam's Club in 1992. As the membership front end manager Kim found more than she was bargaining for when she met Marc Watterson, the club's front end supervisor. “We started dating in April and we had to keep it hush-hush because it was against policy. He asked me to marry him in August so we told everyone and I switched positions. They were all flabbergasted that we'd been able to keep the secret.”
Still at Sam's Club, Marc now works in receiving while Kim works on the floor merchandising the “hard lines” such as electronics, automotive, paper and janitorial products. Blame Kim and her displays for frequent impulse buying at Sam's Club. “It's my niche in life, I'm good at it because I like to make things look appealing and I'm very particular.”
Ashleigh was born in 1997 and Terry “Austin” was born in 1996. In February 2001, the Watterson's life came to a screeching halt. Sent home from Greentown Elementary with a headache and fever, Ashleigh's health declined in a matter of days. She wound up in Akron Children's Hospital for 72 days, the first couple weeks in a medically induced coma to give her brain a rest from the seizures that just kept coming. “Some of it is a blur, some of it I can remember like it was yesterday.” Kim and Ashleigh then spent several months in a Pittsburgh rehab center before returning home in July.
One of the hardest things for Kim is not knowing what caused Ashleigh's condition. “The closest they can say is viral encephalitis, which is the swelling of the lining around the brain.”
The Watterson family has adapted. The family dining room was converted into Ashleigh's bedroom complete with yellow walls and a border of hearts. The family's computer is in the room along with a tv and cozy chair next to the bed. “We spend about three-quarters of our time in there with her.”
“To some extent she's aware and to some extent, I'd have to say she's not. I know when she knows I'm talking to her and other times she looks right through me. I don't know how to explain it, but I just know when I make the connection. I live for it and I treasure it like there's no tomorrow.” Kim said she can't bring herself to watch videos of Ashleigh before her illness. “I can't handle seeing her walking around or talking. It's very hard because I've had the best and worst of both worlds. I had her for nine years.”
Ashleigh receives 16 hours of skilled, in-home nursing each day. “We have the best nurses in the world. Without them, I wouldn't be able to do anything.” Kim's main rock though is her husband Marc. “I would not be able to do any of this without him. The way I look at it, there are people who are way worse off than we are. It brought us closer together. Something like this can either make or break a marriage and we're still going strong after 15 years.”
A devoted fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Kim also follows the Cavs, and the Indians. “Of course I also love watching any team Austin is playing on whether baseball, basketball or football.” Kim frequently brings Ashleigh in her wheelchair to watch Austin's Greentown baseball team coached by Marc. Kim is also a member of St. Paul Church and enjoys visits from the prayer/rosary group.
Kim wants the community to know how much she appreciates the years of help and support given to her family. “I know it's been six years but I want everybody who was there for us to know that I still think about what was done for us all the time and I'm so very grateful.”
Words to live by come quick to Kim: “I take one day at a time now because that's all I can do.”