Documentary shares story of La Grande man impacted by shaken baby syndrome

Published 7:00 am Monday, October 23, 2023

LA GRANDE — The year is 1990 and Josh Sorrels is baffled.

Sorrels, a La Grande grade school student at the time, cannot understand why the four fingers on his left hand turn purple when winter comes to the Grande Ronde Valley. Sorrels asks his mother, Aline, and the answer he receives helps lay the foundation for the production of one of the most compelling documentaries ever shown about a local resident at the Eastern Oregon Film Festival in La Grande.

The film, “Like, Share, Comment and Subscribe,” shown for the first time to the general public on Friday, Oct. 20, tells the story of Sorrels, who was critically injured when he was about 12 months old in a shaken baby incident at his family’s La Grande residence. The tragic incident involved a boyfriend of Sorrel’s mother, who was away at work at the time.

Sorrels, who sustained major head injuries, was rushed to Grande Ronde Hospital and then flown to a medical center in Walla Walla, Washington, where emergency surgery was performed.

“The doctors said he died two times (during the surgery),” said Christopher Baier, of Portland, the director and producer of “Like, Share, Comment and Subscribe.”

“Like, Share, Comment and Subscribe” was one of more than 40 films shown during the Eastern Oregon Film Festival at Eastern Oregon University, Liberty Theatre and the Lodge at Hot Lake Springs from Oct. 19-21.

Feeling the effects

Sorrels emerged from the incident more fortunate than many shaken baby syndrome victims. He escaped crippling injuries and went on to experience a normal childhood. Still, four decades later his recovery remains incomplete.

“Half of my left side is numb,” he said.

Circulation on his left side is also poor. Sorrels said this is why the four fingers on his left hand turn purple when chilly weather hits.

“Those fingers will feel very cold,” he said.

Sorrels, whose family moved away from La Grande when he was about 9, did not develop an in-depth understanding of what happened to him as a baby until he was in his 30s and began taking a closer look at shaken baby syndrome. By this time he had a loyal following on the internet where he has a YouTube channel. Sorrels, on his programs, consumes packaged food products and beverages and then rates them for taste and overall quality.

Sorrels’ videos are filled with light comedic moments.

Sorrels has almost 1,000 subscribers, including Baier. The director did not know about Sorrels’ shaken baby syndrome until he spoke about it in one of his YouTube videos. Baier later learned that some people, after learning that Sorrell was a victim of shaken baby syndrome, stopped watching his videos.

“I found this fascinating,” he said. “That is what got me interested in doing this.”

Baier found there is a lot to like about Sorrels after getting to know him. He is struck by his humble nature and how much he enjoys connecting with people and how genuine he is.

“(Sorrels) is so authentic,” he said.

This is evident when Sorrels produces his YouTube show. Baier said that if Sorrels makes a presentation that has glaring mistakes he never stops to re-record it but instead releases it complete with imperfections.

“Most people want to give a curated view of themselves, but he does not,” he said. “He puts himself 100% out there.”

Full support

Baier made the documentary with the full support of Sorrels.

“I made sure he was totally behind it before I started filming,” he said.

The many people interviewed in the documentary include members of his family, including his mother, Aline Murray, who lives in Richland, Oregon. Murray said she believes as a result, her son’s emotional development does not match his chronological age.

“He is very caring and loving but he is also naive,” she said during an interview in the documentary. “People take advantage of this.”

Sorrels normally is quiet about his shaken baby syndrome condition. He said people often express surprise after learning that he suffers from it and tell him so. They then say that there is no way to tell that it has impacted him.

“Yes there is,” he often replies.

Baier made the documentary while working closely with Sorrels and the National Center for Shaken Baby Syndrome. The documentary was later shown at the center’s national convention. Baier said steps will later be taken to make “Like, Share, Comment and Subscribe” accessible to the public.

Baier is delighted that the first public showing could be in La Grande, where Sorrels moved back to three years ago.

“It is super cool that this can help Josh re-establish himself in La Grande,” Baier said.