‘When do I go home?’: Chesterfield man hospitalized in Lithuania after diving accident

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- A Chesterfield County family is racing against time to bring their son home after he was overseas on a mission trip in Lithuania that took a devastating turn.

Eric Jessee, 23, is recovering in a Lithuanian hospital after a diving accident left him with a severe spinal injury that may have caused permanent paralysis. Jessee was volunteering with Kingsland Baptist Church, working with underprivileged children, when the accident happened during what was meant to be a relaxing beach day.

"I hit something on the bottom, which basically shattered my C5 vertebrae," Jessee said. "I almost drowned. I got pulled out, and I haven’t stood since."

Jessee underwent emergency spinal surgery and spent days in the intensive care unit (ICU). While doctors have cleared him to return to Virginia for continued treatment, his family said efforts to airlift him home have been stalled for weeks due to delays with their insurance provider, Anthem.

"If it was the Anthem CEO’s kid in my situation, this already would’ve been done,” Jessee said. “I would’ve been back in the United States within the week."

His mother, Jennifer Jessee, flew to Lithuania to be by her son’s side and said the hospital is doing all it can. But Eric needs more specialized care than what’s available there.

“Even the doctor said he would be better off in the United States because they don’t have everything he needs,” she said.

Jennifer describes a frustrating cycle of miscommunication and red tape with the insurance company.

“They argue that it’s done," she said. "But then when you go to the other side, it’s not done. We’ve just been going back and forth.”

"From the very beginning of Mr. Jessee’s situation we have been closely involved in supporting his care," Anthem said in a statement. "We remain committed to working with his care providers."

But Jennifer said time is of the essence -- not only for Eric’s physical recovery, but for his emotional well-being. He is confined to a hospital bed thousands of miles from home, unable to move his limbs or see his friends, and is growing more isolated each day.

“Every morning, I come in and he says, ‘When do I go home?’” she said. “It’s heartbreaking. You just want to give your child the one thing he deserves.”

Despite the uncertainty ahead, Jessee said his faith has never wavered.

“I don’t know, I might never walk again,” he said. “There’s a lot of things I might never do again. But if you do have faith in the Lord, take me as an example. The worst things in your life happen for a reason. Don’t let it shake your faith.”

As of the time of reporting, Jessee and his family remain in Lithuania, waiting for clearance and coordination from Anthem to board a medical flight back to Central Virginia and begin the next chapter of his recovery at VCU Medical Center.