JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A Jefferson County family made history in Jefferson City, Thursday.
It’s about 150 miles from the home of Adam and Kayci Capps in Herculaneum to the state capital, but the road for them and their son, Will, had really been much longer than that.
It took them two years to get there.
“I feel like it’s been such a long time coming,” said Kayci.
The first trip to the capital for anyone in the family had them bound for the governor’s office on important business.
“These are the kind of things that don’t make the newsreels as often as they should, but this is important to somebody’s life,” said Governor Mike Parson, told a crowd gathered in his office for the signing of ‘Will’s Law’. “Let’s make this official.”
Then came cheers. Will, his parents, his brother, sister, and grandparents were standing next to the governor as he signed more than a dozen copies of the bill. Will’s big brother, Ben, signed one with the governor.
4-year-old Will has a severe form of epilepsy called Dravet Syndrome. His 11 daily medications cannot completely stop the seizures, which can last an hour or more and threaten his life.
His mother was afraid to leave a 10-minute radius of his pre-school.
With no experience in the workings of government, she began her ‘Will’s Law’ quest when he was two.
“I decided to dust myself off and start advocating,” Kayci said.
State Senator Doug Beck and the bill sponsor spoke to a crowd about the chance of someone getting a seizure.
“If you don’t know it, 1 in 10 people will have seizure at some point in their lifetime,” said Beck.
‘Will’s Law’ requires seizure training for all public and charter school staff. It mandates individual health care plans for students like Will, and it helps parents in what can be a very cruel and lonely struggle.
“Now, they’ll have that chance to have that plan in place. They’ll feel some security that their kids are in a safe spot,” said Beck.
“At least I’ll know until I get (to the school) from wherever I am, he’s going to be safe. That’s a game-changer in itself,” said Kayci.
“Having this training in schools, it’s a life-changing event for a lot of people,” said her husband, Adam. “I’m just proud of my wife. She’s worked so hard on this, talking to so many people, advocating in such an incredible way.”
Kayci said Thursday’s signing of the ‘Will’s Law’ is a ‘good day.’
“Today is just a day for hope, achievement, and success,” said Kayci.
As the governor put it, a good day for Missouri.