{"id":445,"date":"2026-09-27T22:52:04","date_gmt":"2026-09-27T22:52:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/?p=445"},"modified":"2026-09-27T22:52:24","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T22:52:24","slug":"ruston-8-year-old-dies-after-contracting-rare-brain-amoeba-infection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/?p=445","title":{"rendered":"Ruston 8-year-old dies after contracting rare brain amoeba infection"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lillian Smart, a fun-loving 8-year-old, was hospitalized on August 15, 2026, after contracting Naegleria fowleri, a rare brain amoeba infection believed to have been contracted while swimming in Lake Claiborne.Chfr<\/p>\n

\u201cLast night Lillian ran from our arms to the arms of Jesus,\u201d her parents shared on Facebook. They said, \u201cThe injuries to her brain were too severe for her little body to recover from.\u201dchfr<\/p>\n

Smart began receiving medical treatment after developing a high fever and complained of \u201cdouble vision\u201d, her parents said in an update.<\/p>\n

According to the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), the parasite is often found in bodies of freshwater. Health officials warn that it can cause primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a brain infection that may result when water containing the amoeba rushes up the nose and reaches the brain. The infection is extremely rare, but nearly always fatal.<\/p>\n

\n
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Lillian Smart with her parents.
\nPhoto courtesy of Love for Lillian Facebook Page<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

The Ruston community and people across Northeast Louisiana came together to support the Smart family during a difficult time. To celebrate the child\u2019s 8th birthday, friends, neighbors, and local businesses organized the Love for Lillian Fundraiser to help offset the family\u2019s medical expenses. The fundraiser quickly gained traction on social media and throughout the community. Many local businesses donated proceeds, while several shops and restaurants participated by giving a portion of their sales from the day to the Smart family.<\/p>\n

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry expressed his sympathy for the family in a statement on social media, writing, \u201c[We are] heartbroken over the news of Lillian\u2019s passing. Please join Sharon and me in prayer for the Smart family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Following the announcement of Smart\u2019s death, her family stated, \u201cWe are heartbroken and honestly do not know what to do next.\u201d Going on to stake a claim in their faith, saying, \u201cOur foundation is still in Jesus. We didn\u2019t get to keep our girl, but we watched miracles happen on her behalf. We believe God is good.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lillian Smart, a fun-loving 8-year-old, was hospitalized on August 15, 2026, after contracting Naegleria fowleri, a rare brain amoeba infection…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":446,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=445"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":448,"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445\/revisions\/448"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/446"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipecrush.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}