Peyton's Project

Peyton's Project was founded in 2013 after the devastating death of Peyton Hood. While playing on a swing set at the family lake cabin in August of 2010, Peyton was bitten on the ankle by a baby Western Diamondback rattlesnake. Ultimately, she was taken by care flight to Cook's Children's Hospital in Fort Worth, TX where she died five hours later. 

Our mission is to heighten awareness about the realities and dangers of venomous snakes and support medically related interventions. 

We rely on donations from the community in order to uphold our mission. Our free education programs are tailor made to educate all demographics. Teachers, students, TX Dot workers, nurses, camp counselors, and campers are just a few of the demographics we educate. 

We also rely on donations from the community to support our antivenin program. This program ensures that 9 area, rural hospitals have 6 vials of antivenin at all times. This program has helped close to 100 snake bite victims since its inception. 

Please consider donating to Peyton's Project. We do not want what happened to Peyton and our family to ever happen to anyone else. This community has helped our family through a shocking tragedy, and we are so proud to be part of it. 

Who We Are

Our organization was founded in March 2014 as a 501c3 Nonprofit. Our organization provides age appropriate programs to groups of all ages and industries. The program includes basic information about rattlesnakes including their description, behaviors, activity. In addition we provide precautionary measures to take when you encounter a rattlesnake and proper first aid. Our goal is to equip the public with knowledge and awareness to prevent another tragedy.

As part of our mission our organization wanted to positively impact communities in a major way. As we have seen in the media rural hospitals have been suffering nationwide, but especially in Texas, who leads the nation in the uninsured. Undelivered promises of federal health reform, payment cuts by both government programs and private insurers has caused this longstanding problem to become critical closing the doors of some rural hospitals. Medical care is crucial for those residing in those areas, but also those traveling through or vacationing in these areas as well. Vials of antivenin can cost up to $7500 each, and the rural hospitals where this medication is needed the most cannot afford to purchase the required loading dose amount much less maintain their supply. The community as a whole suffers.

In May 2016 our newest program, the Antivenin Program, was launched. The Antivenin Program is a collaboration between three entities, United Regional, Peyton’s Project and approximately nine participating rural hospitals. The program ensures that there is an ample supply (at least 6 vials) of antivenin at all times at each of the participating rural hospitals. This is the amount physicians’ state is the required “loading dose” to allow safe transport to a major trauma center such as United Regional or Cook’s Children’s Hospital. After a venomous bite it is imperative to receive proper treatment in a timely manner since the venom is already quickly traveling throughout the body affecting all organs and body systems. Administration of antivenin neutralizes the effects of the venom and saves lives and limbs.

This program offers benefits to the victims, community and rural medical facilities. These benefits include:
1.) The earliest initial medical treatment of a venomous pit viper bite with antivenin to reduce complications and save limbs and lives
2.) Highly trained medical team with effective protocols
3.) Increased community confidence in medical care in their rural area
4.) Reduces the expense of antivenin to rural hospitals
5.) Exchange component where older antivenin vials are exchanged with newer vials to maintain viability and eliminate waste as the shelf-life of the vials is only 30 months
6.) Immediate replenishment of antivenin

To date our organization has assisted 26 victims in all of our rural facilities including Nocona, Seymour, Olney, Jacksboro, Graham, Vernon, Electra, Henrietta, and Quanah.

With the assistance of BTG, the company who manufactures the only FDA approved antivenin, Crofab, three free mobile apps were developed to help individuals regarding venomous snakes- Snakebite 911, Snakebite 911 ER (for emergency responders), and Snakebite 911 FR (for first responders). These apps offer users an abundance of information including real-time locations of facilities that supply antivenin and snakebite locator. We are urging others to download the app and utilize them.

Another part of our mission which remains a long-term goal is to assist in the funding of medical research using venom. Currently the Natural Toxins Research Center in Kingsville is instrumental in researching possible cancer cures using snake venom...