Welcome to the Eric Louis Mazzola Foundation

Welcome, family and friends, to the official web site and blog of the Eric Louis Mazzola Foundation!

Eric Louis Mazzola, born on July 7, 1977, was the son of Louis and Carol, brother of Jennifer, Pamela and Brian, and a friend of many. Before he was able to celebrate his sixth birthday, he became a victim of bacterial meningitis, which caused his passing on July 10, 1983.

While attending Kindergarten at St. Elizabeth Interparochial School in Wyckoff, New Jersey, Eric suffered from the normal effects of influenza for several weeks - a typical timeline for children affected by the ailment - and eventually began to feel progress as his body was in the infant stages of healing.

However, when Carol went to check on him in bed one night, she found her son in an abnormal state and chose to take him to Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, New Jersey.

There, he was immediately put on life support. Within two hours of Eric's arrival, he was declared brain dead. At that point, Louis and Carol were faced with the daunting decision of pulling the plug or leaving a lifeless body on a machine.

In 1983, there were no vaccines or ample knowledge of the subject, but Eric's autopsy revealed he suffered from the terminal infection, meningitis.

Meningitis, according to WebMD.com, is an infection of the coverings around the brain and spinal cord. The deadly ailment, which occurs most often in children, teens, and young adults, has ravaged many families and friends in the United States over the years.

In fact, there are 1,400 to 2,800 cases of bacterial meningitis each year in the United States, according to an article on ABCNews.com in 2007. The death rate — around 13 percent — is more than 20 times higher than measles, the No. 1 childhood killer worldwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It is our mission to raise awareness for affected families or soon-to-be affected families. It is our goal to cease this tragic occurance, with the help of you and anyone you know.

Yes, you can make a difference!

Help us begin the process.

Hopefully, one day, meningitis will not be a deadly infection. That miracle cannot happen, however, without your help.

So, let us become a family and embark on this fulfilling journey together.

We're glad you're on our team.