The VMC family has lost a true hero.
Richard Patterson passed away last night peacefully, surrounded by his family and friends, to a personal rendition of his favorite song.
In the words of Dr. Stephanie Kolakowsky-Hayner, who leads VMC's Rehabilitation Research Center: Richard was an amazing man who influenced so many diverse circles and will be missed terribly. He led the peer-support counseling program at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center for the past 15 years. He was a tireless advocate for individuals with disabilities, peer support coordinator, committee member for the Public Authority for In-Home-Supportive-Services, a co-chair of the Disability Advisory Commission for the City of San Jose, brother, son, fiancé, colleague, and friend. His loss will impact the thousands of lives he has touched.
One life was mine. I met Rich eight years ago, and there's no end to what he taught me. Rich was the first to explain to me that "you never really 'accept' your spinal cord injury, rather you learn to live and work with it, the best you can, which is why peer support is so critical." As much as someone not living with a disability can understand, Richard Patterson helped me understand.
Our work together saw Richard leading adventurists (like him) with disabilities on glider rides, whale-watching and SCUBA trips, and other excursions that proved what was possible. Great men like Steve Lyon and Marv Tuttle worked with Richard for years to demonstrate to thousands that life after a spinal cord injury can be full and exciting. The VMC Foundation will be forever proud to be part of his legacy.
We have, therefore, established a fund in his name, to ensure that his peer support and community work will grow. His family requests that gifts be sent to the VMC Foundation, 2400 Moorpark Ave. #207, San Jose CA 95128. Be sure to write "Richard Patterson" in the memo of your check, or to give by ccard, call us at 408-885-5299 or visit us on line.
Rich, I'll miss you buddy. We all will.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
We will always remember Richard Patterson
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Another amazing story from a VMC family...
After receiving permission from the family, I am excited to share this story with you. As difficult as it is to imagine feeling "locked in" your own body, imagine being given a chance to start communicating again. That's what VMC's team did for Laure, and part of what the VMC Foundation proudly supports.
When I asked Mr. Chow if I could share this with you, in fact, he responded right away, saying You can certainly share. We credit the staff at SCVMC, especially Dr Duong and your PT/OT/ST staff for challenging while respecting Laure. Laure always faces her challenges head on.
You should also know the nursing staff has always been fantastic. Laure was very particular about her care and Laure felt both safe and genuinely cared for by your nursing staff.
Laure has a long way to go, but your staff has been a source of compassion, support and encouragement towards her recovery.
This, then, from Mr. Chow:
To Laure’s extended family:
It has been a long and difficult year for Laure and her family. She is still paralyzed and mute, and everyday life has been extremely challenging. Today however, I share some good news.
Since Laure has been working diligently with physical/occupational therapy every day, she has managed to gain enough head control to hold her head steady. This allows her to use a machine called Dynavox.
The machine tracks her eyes along a keyboard and when Laure blinks, it accepts this as if she were pressing a key. Once she completes a sentence, she uses her eyes to “click” on the “speak” button and the machine speaks what Laure has just typed with her eyes.
At first Laure spelled, “I am tired”, then “thank you Larry”, and “Annie (her caregiver) you are special”. Then Laure was on a roll, spelling:
I want Internet.
I want email.
I want email.
I want email.
She was then able to spell / speak, “I love Ton Ton” and “I love Caillou”.
Finally, she spelled, “ I am happy” and “I have a voice”. We all cried.
All this took well over an hour; the device is not 100% accurate, and Laure gets exhausted just trying to hold her head steady, but we will keep practicing and hopefully send a few emails soon.
I know you share in our joy, and thank you for your thoughts, prayers, love and support of Laure.
Larry Chow
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Ow. Help?
Every few years I like to experience the emergency services at Valley Medical Center for myself, to make sure the excellent care I always tell people about is for real. Last weekend, Saturday 3am seemed like a super time…nothing much on TV, ya know.
I’ll leave it a mystery how it exactly happened, but I’ll say this: If you gave me a hundred bungee cords and had me try to replicate the accident—on purpose—I’d never manage it again. It was in so tightly and deeply, there was no way I was getting it out without expert help.
So off we went to VMC’s Emergency Department…my friend Lydia drove, thankfully. She was visiting from the Southland, and I think she was pretty surprised to see how efficient and, yes, cheerful everybody was in OUR “county hospital”. Many—okay, most—folks waiting were in worse shape than I was and had priority, but it couldn’t have been an hour before they were taking x-rays of my finger to see if I’d gone through the bone or something else important.
By this time I was pretty freaked out. If you know me, you know that playing guitar is more important to me than pretty much anything else I use that finger for, so you can imagine my relief when the news came back that I’d missed serious damage by, oh, the width of an eyelash or two.
I’m not used to being the least chipper person in the room, and it really helped that all the doctors and nurses and techies around me were so upbeat. Maybe they thought this case was pretty cool. I wasn’t looking (believe me!) when they finally got the bungee hook out, but in no time I was anesthetized, sterilized, trussed up and we were on our way.
Yes, this wasn’t a life and death situation like so many others that come through the doors (or land on the roof via helicopter) at VMC every day, but I cannot thank the team enough for saving my finger.
Maybe you have a VMC Emergency story more compelling than mine (most are, I recon). Feel free to share if you like at echristopher.wilder@hhs.sccgov.org , as we at the VMC Foundation pass on the kudos when we can. Until next time, make sure your bungee cords have those rubber safety tips on each end. It could save your weekend.
Friday, September 17, 2010
A Little Sunshine in VMC Rehab
The Rehabilitation Center at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Recognized nationally as a center for excellence, the VMC Rehab Center treats patients with severe head, spinal cord and stroke related injuries, regardless of ability to pay. Since its founding, over 15,000 patients have been served.
Each one of those patients represents an amazing story of struggle and hope. Here is one, as told by Connie Pugh, Nurse Manager, SCVMC Rehab (2Center)
“A Little Sunshine in VMC Rehab”
For the last six months, a group of nurses from 2Rehab (a Rehab unit within VMC) have been brainstorming ways to improve the patient experience. In May, 2010 one of the new programs launched was the Sunshine Club.
The Sunshine Club was developed to provide a bright and energizing breakfast experience for the 2Rehab patients to help them start their day in a positive way. The Club involves setting up the Rehab Day Room with small tables covered with brightly colored tablecloths, fresh flowers, uplifting music and serving the patients coffee, tea and juice before breakfast. Breakfast then arrives and the staff is there to assist the group of patients with their meal. Conversation is encouraged between patients, families and staff.
On the first day of the Sunshine Club, the staff had the Day Room bright, shiny and ready to go. The problem was the patients didn’t want to get up. They had previously been eating their morning meal in their rooms alone. With a little encouragement, the patients got up and joined the group in the Day Room.
One patient, “Mr V,” just did not want to attend on that first day. I went in to speak to Mr. V and said to him “Mr. V, people just are not made to eat alone in a dark room - we would really like to have you join us in the Day Room.
Mr. V replied back “but I like my dark room and I want to eat alone.” I said to Mr. V, “We want to add some hope and brightness to your morning here in rehab,” and Mr. V replied “but I don’t want hope and brightness, I want to be in the dark.”
At that point I explained to Mr. V that the Sunshine Club was new and we would really like to have him come the first day and then if he did not like it we would not ask him again. He reluctantly agreed to come, although he muttered complaints on the way in to the day room and throughout breakfast.
Later in the day, Mr. V wheeled himself to my office and said he wanted to “fess up about something.” He said the Sunshine Club was a real nice thing we did for patients, including serving coffee, the music and the flowers. Why he really objected to go, he said, was because he had been a youth counselor at one time and seeing young head injury patients in rehab made him very sad.
I then asked Mr. V, “You were a youth counselor?” He replied yes. I said, “Then Mr. V, I really need you to help me with the Sunshine Club. I need you to bring brightness and hope to our young patients – in fact, you can be Mr. Sunshine and come help me each day.”
Mr. V replied to me, “Well if you really need me to help I guess I could do that.”
Bright and early the next morning, and every morning after until discharge, Mr. V helped with the Sunshine Club. He had a special way of getting patients to talk and laugh and have a good time, particularly the young patients.
On Mr. V’s day of discharge, I didn’t see him come into the Sunshine Club at the usual time. A little later he wheeled himself in and said “Everyone, I have an announcement to make: I’m going home today.” The group of patients all clapped for him. He then said, “You all know me as Mr. Sunshine, well today I’m leaving and want to pass the torch to someone else. I’ve chosen ‘Mr. E’ to be the next Mr. Sunshine.”
Mr. E looked up and said “I don’t know, man, what do I have to do?” Mr. V said “Well you have to show up early to help Carlo and Connie get the Day Room Ready and help serve coffee and you have to bring sunshine to all the patients.” Mr. E said he would think about it.
The next morning when I arrived at 0630, Mr. E was already up and in the Day Room. He said with a smile “What do I need to do to help?”
Our new Mr. Sunshine had arrived.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
The First Five Years begin with the First Five Days...
Today we celebrated a major partnership at the VMC Foundation, and I just had to share it with you. First 5 Santa Clara County has made a multi-year, multimillion dollar commitment to us for support of our tiniest, most fragile patients: The babies in VMC’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The benefit of this life-saving equipment and program investment can seriously not be measured fully in dollars or statistics. Let’s instead measure it in families:
The photos above are Greg, Fan and Dana…Dana is about to start Kindergarten, but spent a very tough time in our NICU when she was born tiny and prematurely. When Dana came into the world, she was the size and weight of a stick of butter. Think of that. They thought she might not survive, but today…well, you can see her: A happy, healthy girl ready for school!
It’s the major leaps in technology (and the amazing staff of our NICU) that lead to such great outcomes for Dana and so many others, and First 5’s investment will help ensure we meet our growing tech needs. “What happens to these babies in the first few minutes of life,” explained Nurse Manager Kim Corvin at today’s press conference, “will impact the rest of their lives…and that impacts our whole society.”
Kim is right – and First 5 cannot be thanked enough for this investment in our future. Visit them to learn about the other great things they do around Silicon Valley: http://www.first5kids.org/
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
A new year, and new hope for one family...
I received a very difficult phone call three months ago. I'll never forget it.
Now, before I tell you how this story ends, I invite you to read the following letter I received just a week ago...
Dear Chris:
Back in September of this year you received a call from a mutual friend, Dave Henderson. I think Dave explained that our 16 year old son, Christian Bauerle, sustained a serious injury in a football game and was in intensive care up at Stanford.
Christian sustained an injury to his brain stem artery which caused a blood clot and stroke. The doctors at Stanford performed emergency surgery on him to clear the clot.
We were told that if he survives they did not know to what extent he would regain his functions. At the time I spoke with Dave the doctors at Stanford thought that Christian’s best chance at recovery would be immediate aggressive physical therapy. I spoke with Dave on Wednesday night September 10th and by Thursday afternoon a VMC representative met with Christian and us. By Friday September 12th around noon Christian was admitted into VMC.
Christian was at VMC for eight weeks. When he arrived all he could do was move his eyes and his left leg some. By the end of the eight weeks he was lifting weights, walking, climbing stairs, eating and talking. My wife Karen and I, along with Christian and his brothers and sister, are very grateful for everything you did to get Christian into VMC. We also want to give our thanks to Dr. Duong, Dr. Lin, Amy, Hubert, Kei, Carlo and the rest of the staff in the head injury section of the hospital.
Enclosed is a check in the amount of $1,000 for the VMC Foundation to be used for whatever the hospital committee deems necessary to continue VMC’s fine health programs.
Christian continues to recover now at home, is attending school, and plans to make the high school basketball team next year. We thank you and the VMC staff again for all that you have done for Christian and our family.
Sincerely,
Randy Bauerle
So there's the letter. Now you see why I'll never forget it. Though he has a long road ahead, VMC's Rehab Team (with the support of a great family and determined young man) have once again defied the odds.
I promised to tell you how the story ends. Well, in fact, it hasn't yet. You see, I spoke to Randy (Christian's Dad) at length yesterday and they want very much to be involved. If you come to VMC Foundation's events this year, chances are you'll meet them. If you visit VMC's Rehab Center this year, Christian may be there providing peer support or volunteering.
And if you attend the right High School basketball game this fall, watch for him. He'll be the guy with the most positve attitude on the court...and probably the most points on the board.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
A gift for Edgar, and a happy Thanksgiving
Edgar Flores was introduced to Silicon Valley on Monday...and by Tuesday morning, Silicon Valley was already doing what it does so well: Helping in a time of need.
"I want to grow up to be a doctor and a firefighter,'' he says now. "And a police!"
Weeks after leaving the hospital last December, he was running around and riding his scooter. Last month he was named student of the month in his kindergarten class at Trace Elementary School in San Jose .
"He always does his best," said Kathy Rivera, assistant nurse manager of the burn unit. "He's such a happy child that it makes it hard to feel sorry for him."
Last week, Edgar was back at VMC for more painful skin grafts, and I stopped by to pay him and his parents a visit. The door to his hospital room was decorated with seasonal pictures of turkeys and a cornucopia he had colored in with crayons. He showed me his temporary tattoos — the planet Saturn and a shark — that decorate his arms, which are crisscrossed with marks from skin grafts.
"My nurse, Jennifer, gave me those tattoos," he said proudly.
Edgar is a slender little boy with bright eyes and long, dark eyelashes, the only hair on his head. He has just two fingers on his right hand. Flannel pajamas conceal the scars on his legs, and two bandages on his tummy cover the places where healthy skin had been removed and grafted onto his neck.
He doesn't remember much about the fire. He and his big brother were on their way home from a family gathering in his uncle's Volkswagen van on a warm July day. As they drove through Pacheco Pass on Highway 152, the engine in the rear of the van caught fire.
Edgar, who was strapped in a booster seat in back, couldn't get out. His uncle and 8-year-old brother, Jose, tried to release him. Jose badly burned his hands and face. Eventually another driver stopped and used a knife to cut Edgar out before the fire trucks arrived.
From the day Edgar and Jose arrived at VMC, the family won the hearts of the staff.
"We watched the way the family stepped up, how worried Jose was about his little brother," Rivera said. "We've watched these parents work with Edgar and help him cope with his injuries. He does really well with what he has."
As we stood around Edgar's hospital bed, his mother, Margireta, gently stretched the muscles in his feet. He has a tracheostomy, a permanent opening in his throat, and she needs to clear it several times a day. But she can't keep up with him on the playground.
"All the children know they have to be careful with him," she said in Spanish.
Edgar's father, Miguel, lost his job detailing cars because he spent so much time at the hospital. Since then he has had only occasional construction jobs. MediCal pays for Edgar's treatment, but his parents are having trouble making ends meet. In addition to Jose and Edgar, they have a 3-year-old son, Miguel Jr.
"We have gotten help from family," his father said, "but it has been very, very difficult."
That's when the people who saved Edgar's life stepped in with some extra special caregiving. The nurses in the burn unit passed the hat and raised $720 in three days to help the family pay its rent. Local firefighters pitched in $2,000.
VMC spokeswoman Joy Alexiou said the staff members will provide gifts for the Flores family this Christmas. But they're hoping others in the community will step up and help buy Edgar the present he wants more than anything: a computer.
The injuries to his hands will make it difficult to type or write with a pencil, so it's essential that he adapt to a computer in order to succeed in school.
"He needs something with a touch screen because his fingers aren't strong enough to use a mouse," Alexiou said.
When she first told me Edgar's story, I thought it odd that the burn-unit nurses, who see so many severely injured children, so many family tragedies, would take up the cause of this one little boy. But having met him, I understand.
"He's a very smart little boy with a wonderful attitude," Rivera said. "He has us all wrapped around his little finger."
if you're interested: To help Edgar, mail checks made out to "The Edgar Flores Fund" to the VMC Foundation, 2400 Moorpark Ave. #207, San Jose 95128. Or donate online at http://www.vmcfoundation.org/.
Monday, October 27, 2008
VMC's surgeons help a man breathe on his own
The following story appeared Friday on NBC 11 News, and reminds us why spinal cord injury care at Valley Medical Center is above and beyond...and why we must protect Silicon Valley's largest hospital. Read on!
San Jose Surgeons Help Paralyzed Man Breathe on His Own
Procedure could allow thousands of people to regain critical functions
By Jane Ann Furer
Doctors at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center performed a first of its kind surgery to help a paralyzed man breathe on his own.
Four months ago, 59-year-old Kevin Brady fell at his home in Tucson, Arizona. He broke his neck, fractured his skull and until last week, relied on a ventilator to help him breathe.
Oct. 15, a team of surgeons at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center (SCVMC) in San Jose implanted electrodes in the muscles of his diaphragm.
They stimulate the diaphragm's muscles to expand and contract, which pulls air in and out of the lungs.
Those electrodes are connected to a pacemaker that's worn outside the body.
The procedure is significant because it's the first time it's been performed on a recently injured patient.
Doctors say it works because the muscles can still regain function as opposed to someone with an old injury.
"When Kevin's diaphragm muscles recover their strength, he will be able to breathe without a ventilator for longer and longer periods of time," said Dr. Akshat Shah, a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist at SCVMC. "Even though he came to us with severe pulmonary problems, his progress so far has been remarkable."
SCVMC is one of the first hospitals in the nation to perform such a procedure.
Doctors say it could open the door for hundreds or even thousands of paralyzed Californians to breathe, taste, smell and talk normally for the first time since their injuries.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
A new baby at VMC!
First, because not everyone reads the Mercury News (but should) on weekends, a very compelling letter from a local hero supporting Measure A on Saturday:
Measure A is a matter of life and death
Measure A is the single most important issue on the ballot in Santa Clara County this November. Every day, police officers and firefighters dispatch ambulances to Valley Medical Center for patients to receive lifesaving trauma services at Valley Medical Center's Level 1 trauma and burn centers.
Regardless of where a person lives in Santa Clara County, chances are they will be taken to Valley Medical Center in the event of a serious accident or emergency, and they would definitely end up in Valley Medical Center's burn center in the event of serious fire and burn injuries.
Measure A is a matter of life and death, and that's why public safety personnel and organizations urge you to vote yes on Measure A.
Art Marshall
President Santa Clara County Firefighters
...and another on Sunday, from a young Saratogan...what this letter doesn't tell you is that Marie crashed her car on graduation day:
Pass Measure A so VMC is here for you
I crashed my Volvo on Highway 9 in Saratoga and the only thing I can remember is lying on the ground next to my open car door. I was rushed to Valley Medical Center's trauma unit. The paramedics were concerned that I might have serious internal injuries. Had Valley Medical Center not been around, there is a very good chance I would have not had the immediate care I needed. With Measure A appearing on the ballot in a couple of weeks, I know how lucky I was to have VMC to care for me after my accident.
Please vote yes on A so that Valley Medical Center will be here for you or your family members when you need it most.
Marie Stark
Saratoga
These letters and others like it are appearing in newspapers every day around Silicon Valley - read your local papers and see!
What I wanted to share with you is that my friend DeAnn had her first baby this week at VMC! After thirty hours of labor, she had a C-section, and 9-pound Zachary was brought into the world!
De shared with me that the whole time she was in pre-natal care, right on up through the birth, she was treated like a princess by the team at VMC. This of course is no surprise to me or you, the alert reader, but it is a surprise to many who still don't get that VMC is probably the safest place to have a baby in Silicon Valley. Congratulations, De and Jamie, on the new addition to your family!
Incidentally, the morning of Zachary's arrival, I was touring a group of young First 5 staff members through VMC, and we shared an elevator ride to up to Labor/Delivery with Dr. Steve Harris, our chair of pediatrics. One of the young staff members, she herself expecting a child, asked if we could see the "nursery" where all the babies could be viewed through the window.
Dr. Harris smiled. "We don't do it like that anymore," he explained. "As soon as we can, we want the babies right there with their moms."
And so it was when I visited De...just hours after a C-section, Zachary was right there in the room with her, gurgling away happily. The way it should be.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Trauma Team saves a life under extraordiary circumstances...
The best place to perform emergency trauma surgery is in an O.R.
Mercury News 10-8-08
Mike Van Loben Sels, battalion chief for the South Santa Clara County Fire Protection District, said the accident was reported at 9:47 p.m. Monday at ASV Wines, 12805 Llagas Road.
The employee's leg was caught in an auger — a large spiral screw used in different parts of the wine production process, such as removing grape skins.
Valley Medical Center doctors flew by helicopter to the winery and helped extract the man from the machine.
Dr. John Sherk, chief trauma surgeon, and anesthesiologist Dr. Barry Waddell amputated the man's right leg at mid-thigh, before he was taken to Valley Medical in San Jose.
"It's amazing,'' said hospital spokeswoman Amy Carta. "The community should know that doctors go out to the site when necessary.''
Sunday, August 17, 2008
When all around you is collapsing...
...your hospital better not.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
"I'm a lucky guy."
When you hear someone who has suffered a life-changing injury refer to themselves as “lucky”, you cannot help be re-inspired by the human spirit. Such is the case of David McNabb, whose story will absolutely move you…please read on, and a huge thanks to my friend Brenna at PRx for coordinating this visit!
MorganHillTimes.com | Survivor
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
By Marilyn Dubil (marilynd@morganhilltimes.com)
Hugs, squeals of joy and lots of laughter filled the Santa Clara
Valley Medical Center burn unit as former patient Dave McNabb,
who holds the record for length of stay in the burn center, made a
visit with his parents last week.
After more than 17 months in the hospital's Regional Burn Center,
McNabb and his parents developed relationships with the center's
staff.
"It feels like a family reunion," laughed nursing supervisor Jill
Sproul.
McNabb's story begins in 2002, when he was working for Fluor
Corporation, a large construction and maintenance company that
did maintenance work for IBM Corporation.
The 40-year-old Hollister resident who grew up in Morgan Hill,
was working on electrical maintenance. He was told, he said, to
take a part from an electrical box on Jan. 5, 2002. What he didn't
realize was that there was power flowing through a line in the
box, 12,400 volts of electricity from a high voltage transformer,
which led to a 35 million watt electrical explosion in his body.
The electricity grabbed on to him, and he kicked and tried to break free,
but it just pulled him "like a magnet."
"I shorted that machine out, so it blew up and when it blew up it set me on
fire and threw me back 10 feet into a wall," he said. "I was still
conscious, but I was on fire. I'm on fire trying to put it out."
With no one but a co-worker around at the substation, the co-worker had to
put the fire out by slapping him with his hands. McNabb instructed him to
get on the radio and call his boss.
He was taken to Valley Medical Center by ambulance.
From the shock he was in he couldn't feel the pain.
By the time he arrived at the hospital, the pain was horrible, he said. He
was in a medically-induced coma for the first four months.
"You're just a mummy. You're wrapped completely with a couple of tubes
coming out," he said.
His parents were told he had a two percent chance to live.
"I just wanted to see my son," Judy McNabb said. "When they finally let me
see him, all I could see were his eyes.
The recovery process was slow and tortuous, with 50 operations, skin grafts
and dealing with a variety of emotions.
For Dave's family, emotions were already raw after Judy's sister was killed
in a car accident in October 2001 and her nephew was dying from
complications from diabetes.
"My mother is such a strong person," he said. "I could never have gotten
through that without her."
Dave said when he was ready to give up, his mother pushed him to keep going.
"He's my child, as a mom I had to do everything I could," she said. "Dave
and I always had a close bond."
Once he left the hospital, Dave stayed with his parents for a year, with his
mom acting as his nurse.
She spent hours each day just changing bandages.
"It's hard to come to terms that you're going to be that way for the rest of
your life," he said. "I'm really an act of God ... One day I go from being
(active) to getting hurt."
He was 34 years old at the time of the accident and he felt like he was just
starting to get his life together and know what he was going to do, making
good money. Then his whole life turned around.
McNabb grew up in San Martin, graduated from Live Oak High School. He
enrolled in the military when he was 18. In 1998 he began working for Fluor.
After the accident, Dave said, his friends drifted away because it was
painful for them to see him suffer.
"How do you look at someone who's burned 70 percent? It was hard for them,"
he said.
Judy said despite all he has been through, her son is not bitter. She
describes him as generous and caring.
Dave donated his motorized wheelchair to a young girl in Hollister when he
saw her in a store, Judy said, her mother pushing her in a non-motorized
chair.
"He's a beautiful man," she said.
Richard Alexander, McNabb's attorney who helped him navigate all the medical
and job issues, considers him a friend.
"He's an extremely courageous man," he said. "He came within inches of being
thrown on the human scrap heap, very close, but he fought his way back."
Gale McNabb, Dave's father, said Alexander fought hard for Dave, not letting
up until he got what Dave needed to pay his skyrocketing medical bills.
"It's hard to know what kind of lawyer to hire when you're in dire straits,"
Gale said. "Dick Alexander has been amazing. He dedicated himself to getting
what was right for Dave."
Dave agrees that Alexander played a major role in his recovery.
"I have the best lawyer that you can imagine ... He still calls me to see
how I'm doing. He's become a friend. He's a real great guy. I've never met
anyone like him."
McNabb says he wakes up every day thanking God for another day. He's more
appreciative of being able to perform small tasks for himself, as well as
enjoy his hobbies, riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle, hunting, fishing.
He feels blessed.
"I'm a lucky guy."
