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Dwight Fryer

Memphis, Tennessee
Father of Adrienne, Who Died of Meningococcal Disease

Dwight Fryer's daughter, Adrienne, tragically lost her life to meningococcal disease, when she was a junior in high school. Adrienne was an outstanding student and a healthy young woman with a bright future ahead of her when she contracted this serious bacterial infection.

One Saturday in January 2001, Adrienne helped prepare a special dinner for her father's birthday and then went to see a movie with her sister, Amanda. When she returned home, she wasn't feeling well and had stomach cramps, so she decided to lie down. A few hours later, Adrienne developed a fever of 104 degrees. Dwight and his wife initially thought their daughter just had the flu, but by morning Adrienne was lethargic, experiencing sensitivity to light, and complained of terrible pain in her legs. Dwight and his wife decided Adrienne should be brought to the hospital.

Dwight had an engagement at church that Sunday morning, but called his wife who had brought Adrienne to the hospital to see how his daughter was feeling. He was told the doctors weren't yet sure what was wrong with Adrienne. That afternoon, when Dwight and his family went to visit Adrienne he asked the doctors if it was possible his daughter had meningitis. As the doctors began conducting tests to see if meningococcal disease was the cause of her illness, Adrienne slipped into a coma. Sadly, Adrienne passed away only a few hours later.

Dwight had heard of meningococcal disease, but never imagined he would lose his daughter to this deadly but potentially vaccine-preventable bacterial infection. Like many families affected by the disease, it was only after his daughter's death that Dwight learned a simple vaccination may have saved Adrienne's life.

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