Parents Donate 8-Year-Old's 'Heart of Gold' After He Dies in Freak Basketball Accident

An 8-year-old boy in Corbin, Kentucky, suffered a tragic accident on Monday night while playing basketball at his home, and it ended up being fatal. Now, Eli Hill's parents say they've decided to donate his organs to help others and to honor his legacy. Eli was described by his parents as “having a heart of gold," per WCTV.

Eli was taken to a hospital after the accident and was pronounced dead. The coroner’s office determined his cause of death was blunt force trauma to the chest, WCTV reported.

The boy was playing basketball at home when the accident occurred.

Eli reportedly grabbed something to stand on so he could dunk the ball into the basketball net when the backboard came off and fell on him, according to a report from the Fayette County Coroner’s Office, according to WCTV.

The boy’s parents hope to help others.

Ashley and Adam Hill made the difficult decision to donate Eli's organs so they could honor his legacy and help others.

"We know that our most devastated moment is somebody else's answered prayer. Somebody got a call this morning or last night that there was a heart for them," Ashley Hill said, according to Insider. "And listen, they got the best heart. It was a golden heart. It is a golden heart.”

"Eli was only eight. But in his eight years, he has shined his light so bright. We're just so proud of him. We are just so proud of the legacy he's left behind," she said.

The whole community grieved Eli and hosted a vigil to honor his memory.

The community in Corbin, including Eli’s coaches, teammates, and teachers, grieved his loss and gathered to remember him and support his family by hosting a vigil, according to WYMT. The little boy left an impact on those who knew him, and it was evident by the words those in the community shared about him.

Morgan Taylor, Eli’s teacher, remembered her student's sense of humor and energy. “I can sit here and tell you word after word of the things that child has said to me that have made me laugh," she said, WYMT reported. "Just the funniest, wittiest little kid. Just the energy that he brought to the room ... happy, always smiling. That red hair that would just light up a room."

He loved baseball, and a memorial fund is going to set up by his parents.

Eli spent a lot of time at the local baseball field, and the vigil was actually held at the pitcher’s mound where he played many games, WYMT reported.

Family friend Cameron Combs shared a few words about Eli’s love of sports and baseball. “Everyone knows how much I love baseball. But it will never be the same as Eli," he Combs said. "Every camp, every day, he wanted the extra swings."

Eli’s parents shared that a memorial fund will be established in his name but it has not yet been set up, they said, nor has a GoFundMe page, WYMT reported. Eli's funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at Heart Funeral Home.

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