Hi! Welcome to my team page.

My name is Hawkins, and I’m 11 years old. I was diagnosed with hydrocephalus when I was just 3 months old. My first shunt was placed shortly after my diagnosis, and I was fortunate to have the same one for seven years until it stopped working. In February 2020, right before the COVID pandemic, I had two more brain surgeries. I've been lucky to have had only 3 brain surgeries so far, but many of the kids and adults I know in the hydrocephalus community have had over 40—some even more than 200! This is why spreading awareness about hydrocephalus and raising money for research is so important.

Our family has been very active in the hydrocephalus community. My parents started the Dallas-Fort Worth (Texas) Hydrocephalus Walk when I was a baby, and it has become very successful. This year, our participation looks a little different—we're traveling the U.S. and Canada for the year, so we’ve joined the St. Louis Hydrocephalus Walk since it’s along our route! We’re excited to be part of this event and meet new people in the St. Louis community.