The Beverly Brown Simms Story

On April 21, 2008, my first-born child, Adam was born. He was one of the most precious gifts God gave us, and loved by so many. From the first day he was born, I would sing several songs to him daily, but his favorite song we would sing together was, “You Are My Sunshine.” He loved to smile, loved to watch Mickey Mouse, loved trains, the color purple, loved to run, go fishing, and loved to eat gummy bears. He was very independent and full of life! We dedicated him to the Lord at our home church, Lee Street Baptist in Enterprise, AL before turning one.

The morning of May 21, 2010 (he was 2 years and 1 month old), as I was dropping him off at my mom’s house, I remember kneeling down on the front porch and getting a huge hug and kiss from him, and we both said, “I love you,” then he went into the living room to watch Mickey Mouse. My mother told him she was going to the bedroom to gather the dirty clothes to bring to the laundry room, that she would be right back. When she finished, which only took her a minute or two, she went back into the living room, only to see Adam not sitting there. She thought he was just hiding, and looked everywhere inside. After several minutes of searching, even though his shoes were by the door, and all doors were secure, she went outside to look. Still, no sign of Adam. A short time later, I received a phone call at work (I was working for an attorney’s office at the time). When I picked up the phone, the fear in my mom’s voice was a sound I will never forget. She said Adam was missing. Words can’t adequately describe how I felt at that moment. I was numb. She said she had already made contact with the police, and that they were on their way. I do not remember how I drove home from work, but I made it, and began looking in the woods with others near the pond. The whole time, I had a gut feeling; a mothers instinct, that he was in the pond. While searching in the woods behind their home, my dad and I just happened to look towards the pond, and we see a white container floating under the dock.

Back-story: A few weeks prior to this day, my dad had purchased several ducks to live near the pond. Every afternoon, when my dad would get home from work, my dad and Adam would fill the white container with feed at the barn beside the house, walk to the pond together behind the house, and feed them from the dock. When they finished feeding the ducks, my dad would clean out the bucket by filling it with pond water, then would dump it out. Then they would walk back to the barn, and put the white container up.

When I saw that white container floating, that is when I told the officers I felt that’s where he was. Dallas Boyd (our hero and angel on earth), who was off work that day, and is a certified scuba diver, heard my mom call out for him. Dallas got on his gear, and proceeded to get in the pond. In a matter of minutes, our whole world would forever change. Dallas found Adam at the bottom of the pond, under the dock. I began to scream out, “Why Lord, please don’t take my baby!” Indescribable heartache. When we got to the hospital, we were told there was nothing left they could do. All the thoughts going through my mind were, why God would take our baby. Adam was so very well loved and taken care of. He had his whole life ahead of him. We should not be burying our son. All of these thoughts were flooding through my mind. We then were approached by Brian Sims from the Alabama Organ Donor Association via phone (the same name as my husband’s) and we were asked if we would like to donate his heart valves and bone marrow, which would save the lives of two children. After talking it over with my husband privately for a few minutes, we agreed to donate, to give two other children life. I then held Adam’s lifeless body for hours as we waited for him to be taken to the Alabama Organ Donor Association Center. When they arrived, we sent him with his favorite stuffed animal, Mickey Mouse, and kissed him bye. The next day or two we met at the funeral home, to make arrangements.

God had me leading the music at Hebron for several years to give me my confidence back to prepare me for what God had planned for my life to glorify HIM through my tragedy. I never would have imagined I’d be telling the world my story a few years later. He was working out the details and writing my story. A testimony that offers encouragement and inspires others to not give up hope no matter what you face. To keep the faith and cling to God, because He will never leave you nor forsake you as it states in Deuteronomy 31:6. God brought me out of the bottom of the valley, and got me back singing when I felt I had nothing left in me for years! There is Victory in Jesus! That is why it is so important to have faith and wait on God’s timing. Be patient, obedient, serve and honor Him, and the blessings will unfold. His time is always perfect.