Atticus Ecker Donates Organs to Save Other Children

On December 22, 2019, a two-year-old Atticus Finn Ecker wore a red eye mask, cheesed for the camera and said, “I’m a superhero.” His little voice was halfway between a baby still learning to talk and a little boy who was growing up too fast. Little did anyone know what a superhero he would become at 73 months old, 4 short years later.

Atticus was born on September 23, 2017 to Jacob Ecker and Blair Sage of Trezevant. He was a happy little guy, full of personality, but the real fun began when he started talking; that’s when they learned how witty and funny he was. He could name all the WWE wrestlers, knew all their intro songs, and their moves. His “Red Ribbon Week” costume for “Decades Day” was him dressed as “the attitude era” and he rocked it!

Atticus went to his school’s Halloween party on Tuesday and had the best time with his classmates.

He began feeling sick that afternoon and developed a fever. On Wednesday, November 1, the fever continued so he stayed home from school and went to the doctor. He was diagnosed at 6 months old with febrile seizures.

Febrile seizures are seizures or convulsions that occur in young children. They are triggered by fever typically above 101 degrees Fahrenheit. Seizures may happen during illnesses such as a cold, the flu, or an ear infection. Any time his fever would spike, he was at risk of having another seizure. Earlier this year, he was diagnosed at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital as having Epilepsy.

Thursday, November 2, he woke up with a smile on his face. He said he was feeling a little bit better today. By 10 a.m. everything had changed. He had a really bad seizure and was transported to Baptist Memorial Hospital-Carroll County in Huntingdon. From there he was life-flighted to Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in Nashville. After a series of tests, it was determined that his life was not sustainable.

Fast forward to Sunday, November 5, Atticus went to Heaven. Atticus donated multiple organs and the doctors said that he could save 5 lives. On Sunday, they found a perfect match for his heart in a child from Tennessee. As Margaret Bumpus, Atticus’s great-great grandmother, would say, “Something good always comes out of something bad.”

Atticus was a Kindergarten student in Mrs. Malorie Watkins’ class at West Carroll Primary in McLemoresville.

He is survived by his parents, Blair and Skyler Sage and Jacob Ecker and Sarah Tatum Ecker, all of Trezevant; his grandparents, Chris and Meg Mann of McKenzie, Steve Pinson and Lindsey Pinson of McLemoresville, Tammy Rowland and Chuck Barnes of Kentucky, Buddy Ecker of Milan, Ann and Mitch Sage of Jackson; maternal great-grandmother, Elizabeth “Wuzzy” Grooms; a brother Silas Tatum; Uncles and Aunts: Bo Bratton, Beth and Justin Scruggs, Chloe Pinson, Ava Pinson, Heather and Mike Pace, Beau and Becca Sage, Sophia Sage and Scarlett Sage. As well as several aunts, uncles, and cousins. He was preceded in death by a Grandmother Virginia Tucker.

Funeral service are Thursday, November 9, 2023, at 2 PM at Bodkin Funeral Home with burial to follow in the Pisgah Cemetery in Atwood. Visitation with the family will be held on Thursday from 12 – 2 PM at the funeral home.

The family does not have any special requests at this time. However, the Tennessee Donor’s Association has been amazing throughout this whole process, and they encourage you to consider supporting this association. The association said that all of Atticus’s organ donations will go to recipients in Tennessee.

The family says thank you for all the prayers, calls, and texts they have received. They ask that you please keep them in your prayers over the next few days and weeks.

Bodkin Funeral Home, Milan.