She died of an asthma attack 1 year ago — now, her mom is speaking out to help others

Whenever Kimberly Couvillon wants to feel close to her daughter, she visits Windsor's George Avenue Park. 

By the parking lot, there's a memorial: flowers and images of 14-year-old Amber Marie McCollom. It was at that park, nearly one year ago, that McCollom had an asthma attack that claimed her life. 

"No parent should ever have to live through this kind of loss," Couvillon said. 

She described her daughter, one of five children, as a "little fireball" with so much energy. She loved dancing and singing and ran track-and-field. 

A 'scary' diagnosis

"Her asthma limited her to the 100-metre-dash, but she was one of the fastest in her class," she said.

"She wanted to help people. She wanted to be a social worker."

Amber, was first diagnosed with asthma when she was just three years old when she had a severe attack that landed her in hospital. 

"It was scary," Couvillon recalled. After that, she would end up in the emergency room about once a year, but Couvillon said that in recent years it seemed like things were getting under control. 

A tragic day in June

In June 2024, Couvillon's worst nightmare played out.

On June 2, the last thing Amber said to her mom was "I love you" before meeting up with friends at George Avenue Park. 

It was there that she suffered a severe asthma attack. She had her inhaler, but it wasn't helping to get the attack under control. Her mother explained that she had needed Ventolin in that moment, which is used to increase air flow in the lungs. An ambulance was called, but Couvillon said the paramedics didn't arrive in time to get her that medication in time. Amber had gone into cardiac arrest. 

Couvillon received a call from paramedics while they were trying to get Amber's pulse back. They were able to do so after six minutes, but by then, the lack of oxygen had done irreparable harm to her brain. 

Amber was treated in hospital in the days that followed, and Couvillon held out hope that her daughter would come back to her. But tragically, on June 5th, Amber was pronounced dead due to lack of brain activity.

Amber's organs were donated, and saved multiple lives. 

"She would have wanted that. That was her thing. She always wanted to help people, so she saved two children with her kidneys, a 30-year-old woman with her liver and a 60-year-old man with her heart, and her pancreas was donated to research," Couvillon said.

"It makes me feel good because there's people out there that are living and they're not feeling what I'm feeling," she said through tears.

Couvillon said she's sharing her story now she doesn't want other families to experience this kind of tragedy. 

300 people die to asthma every year

"People don't understand how severe asthma can be," she said. "People don't realize it can be deadly."

She hopes for better education and better treatments for people living with asthma.

Jeffrey Beach, the president and CEO for Asthma Canada, explained that statistics show that around 300 people annually in Canada lose their lives to asthma. 

"We want people to know that they may not be taking their asthma as seriously as they should be," he said, encouraging anyone with asthma to go to the Asthma Canada website and access the supports available to help them there. He encourages individuals to evaluate their management of their asthma and speak with their doctor. The organization also free access to a certified respiratory educator.

He added that an estimated 50 per cent of people living with asthma do not have their condition optimally controlled, which can lead to "devastating" consequences, he said. 

Looking back, there were a number of things that had piled on in the lead up to Amber's death, Couvillon reflected. Just days before, they had taken Amber to see her doctor and they were told that her breathing wasn't doing very well, and so the doctor had switched to a new puffer medication. On top of that, Amber also suffered from allergies that made matters worse, and later, at the hospital, Couvillon found out that she had also had a viral infection they had been unaware of.

Furthermore, Amber had also been vaping. Couvillon had tried to stop her from doing it, but with no luck. 

"You need to protect your lungs," Couvillon said, "especially having asthma."

A bench in Amber's honour

To honour her daughter's memory the family did a balloon release at the park on her birthday on December 2, and they plan on doing another one on the first anniversary of her death this coming June. 

They are also holding two fundraisers in the coming weeks to raise $5,000 for a permanent bench for the park in Amber's memory. The bench will also display a QR Code that directs people to Amber's story along with information about how to care for asthma. If there's any money left over, that will go to Asthma Canada in Amber's memory. 

As for how the family is coping now in the aftermath of the loss, Couvillon said they pull together, adding that she finds talking about it is helpful. 

"She was just an awesome person. She had so much potential to do so much good, and she wanted to do good, she wanted to help people. And I really want people to take asthma more serious. Because it is — asthma is serious," Couvillon said.

"I just miss her so much. I really, really do."