From the PICU to the Finish Line

September 28, 2026

For two weeks in 2025, Patient Ambassador Julius was the sickest patient in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. When he finally left the hospital, Julius’ doctor told his family that they had only over seen eight cases of Julius’ condition; he was the only one to survive. Here, Julius tells his story in his own words.

My name is Julius, and I’m 11 years old.

Before I got sick, I was just a kid who loved being outside and having fun. I played basketball, football, hockey, and track and field. But my biggest passion is cross-country. I love running. I also love hanging out with my friends, riding my bike, fishing, and going frog hunting.

I never thought any of that could be taken away from me.

Julius in the hospital during his treatment.

One day, I was playing basketball like I normally did. A few days later, I became really sick. I couldn’t walk, and my whole left side stopped working. Everything changed really fast.

I was flown by helicopter to Children’s Hospital Colorado. After testing, doctors discovered I had a subdural empyema, a rare and life-threatening infection around my brain. The infection caused severe seizures and required multiple emergency surgeries.

I don’t remember everything from my time there because I was so sick, but I remember the helicopter ride. I also remember something that I will never forget: the feeling when I realized I could move the left side of my body again.

I had three emergency surgeries, including a craniotomy. I had seizures and spent a lot of time in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). There were a lot of machines, tubes, doctors, nurses, and people working around me.

But they never gave up on me.

The doctors and nurses at Children’s Colorado took care of me when I was at my sickest. They worked together to help me get stronger and learn how to do things again. My therapists helped me learn how to move, walk, talk, and use my body again.

They also took care of my family. They made sure my mom and family had support while I was sick. Everyone treated us like we mattered.

When I finally got to go home, I had one big goal.

I wanted to run again.

Julius running outside of Children’s Hospital Colorado.

I worked hard. Really hard.

Now I’m running cross-country, which is my favorite sport. I’m doing things that I never knew if I would be able to do again. I can run a mile in about five minutes, and I’ve competed at the national level.

Julius challenging his care team to a race.

Sometimes I think about how different my life could have been if Children’s Colorado hadn’t been there for me.

I get to go to school. I get to hang out with my friends. I get to ride my bike. I get to fish and go frog hunting. I get to play sports. I get to run.

I get to be a kid.

That is something I don’t take for granted.

The people at Children’s Hospital Colorado didn’t just help me survive. They helped me get back to the life I love.

And someday, I want to help other people, too. I want to become an anesthesiologist because I want to be part of helping people when they are scared or sick.

I’m thankful for every doctor, nurse, therapist, and person at Children’s Colorado who helped me. They believed in me when I was too sick to understand what was happening.

I want to help support Children’s Colorado because I know what they do for kids and families. They gave me a chance to come home, grow up, chase my dreams, and do all the things I love again.

Children’s Colorado saved my life. But they did something even bigger for me—they gave me my childhood and my future back.

Julius

And I’m going to keep running.