‘Every day is hard:’ Nassau County officials & family of 23-year-old blood clot victim raising aware

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — All Emily Adkins ever wanted to do was make a difference in the world, with her mom saying from a young age Emily wanted to be in politics. But at just 23-years-old, Emily passed away suddenly and unexpectedly, due to a blood clot after ankle fracture surgery. Now, Saturday marks exactly one year since Emily’s death.

“For the last year, we’ve just focused on addition… but every day is hard,” Emily’s mom, Janet Adkins, told Action News Jax with tear filled eyes.

One of the ways Janet Adkins and her husband Douglas Adkins have focused on “addition” following the loss of their daughter, is by raising awareness of the dangers of this silent killer.

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According to stoptheclot.org, claims up to 300,000 lives each and every year across the United States, greater than the total number of people who lose their lives each year to aids, breast cancer, and motor vehicle crashes combined.

“It just breaks my heart to see so many parents who’ve lost children,” said Douglas Adkins. “We understand their pain and anguish. Even our governor [Ron] Desantis lost his sister to a pulmonary embolism, a preventable blood clot.”

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Now, October will officially be known as the Emily Adkins Blood Clot Awareness Month in Nassau County, after the board of county commissioners unanimously approved the motion at Wednesday’s meeting. The town of Hilliard plans to also make the same proclamation for the month of October at their meeting Thursday night.

Emily always wanted to make an impact in the world and now, she continues to do so even after death.

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“If we can draw people’s attention to preventing a blood clots in their families. Just maybe, hopefully, you know, we help somebody prevent the tragedy that we live every day,” added Douglas Adkins.

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