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Connor was born 9 weeks early, a very special boy with multiple medical issues and special needs. Throughout his young life, he seemed to collect diagnoses like others collect baseball cards. Like a rainbow of colored M&M's, Connor had a colorful litany of medical 'issues' and 'accessories' that supported his fragile life. He had Mitochondrial Disease, a disease that affects the energy that the body needs to function; and seizure disorders that began at infancy and continued throughout his life. He lived with a trach and was ventilator and oxygen dependent, as well as a GJ tube for relieving pressure and draining fluids. He had dysmotility, chronic distention and constipation, a condition called CIPO, leading to the shut-down of his digestive system. Because of CIPO, he had an IV line in his chest, which was used for nutrition (TPN) and medication.

Connor also had severe anxiety disorders, a sensory processing disorder, and "PDD-NOS", an autism-spectrum disorder (ASD). In the fall of 2006, Connor was diagnosed with a very rare blood disorder called HLH, which caused recurring bacterial and yeast infections, requiring frequent hospitalizations. In the spring of 2007, he was found to have immune deficiencies; his bone marrow was not producing enough blood cells. In September, 2007, Connor succumbed to his multiple diseases and died.

However, it was not his multiple medical issues and special needs that defined him, but his incredible feisty spirit, a tender, loving heart...a spunky spit-fire little guy who changed the lives of those he touched. In her blog, Connor's mom writes: