My cousin, Alex, has a favorite Winston Churchill quote:  “To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”  I always thought this quote described him, as he was always serving someone, and preparing for his chance to make a difference in this world in some bigger way. He was the guy that I thought would do great things—you know, the one who would work a little harder than most, go the extra mile, do things that other people were unwilling to do.  He was the first guy to offer to help you, and would give you the shirt off his back, if he thought you needed it.  He has a heart the size of Texas, and is not afraid to make sacrifices, to go without, to work his guts out.  I saw a life of great service and opportunity to do much good ahead of him.

All that seemed to change on an unsuspecting Memorial Day weekend hike up a mountainside and through a cave in Idaho two years ago.  While the vista was lovely, and the frozen waterfall amazing, the enthusiasm of the little group disappeared when Alex unsuspectingly slipped on a rock, slamming his head into the side of the cave, as a 20-30-pound rock came crashing down upon him.  He became immediately disoriented, lost his ability to speak, and found it difficult to coordinate his legs and feet well enough to walk.  He began to shake uncontrollably, seemingly in shock, and it was utterly miraculous that his cousin and brother-in-law were able to get him down the mountainside without anyone else being harmed.

Alex was later diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, and two years of tests, therapies, and grueling hard work have resulted in little or no progress.  In some ways, it’s like he’s still back in that cave.  He gets disoriented.  His legs or feet sometimes don’t quite work.  He has what appear to be non-epileptic seizures.  He’s experienced some memory loss, and can’t concentrate.  He can’t drive.  He had to drop out of college because of it, and he can’t work more than an hour or two at a time before his brain gets too fatigued and simply shuts down, and he with it.  His capacity for work after two years of trying to heal is  still just a few hours a week, as that seems to be all his brain can manage.  Yet, he still smiles, and is happy, and tells everyone how great he’s doing.  Yep, that’s Alex for you.

It’s kind of discouraging to watch him, in a way.  He was the guy who started a lawn-mowing business when he was sixteen so he could make money to go on a full-time mission for his church and go to school, doing that while still in high school, and eventually working another part-time job at the same time.  He was always willing to work for what he got, and go above and beyond to help others.  But now he can hardly help himself.  He’s stuck living at home with his parents, and hoping that somehow the therapies he’s doing will change things. I guess I just want to help him, because he’s always the guy that would help others.

There is a place in Provo, Utah called Cognitive Fx.  It is a cutting edge traumatic brain treatment injury program.  Their program starts with a functional MRI (FMRI), showing exactly the areas of the brain damaged by injury.  Then they build an intensive one-week personalized treatment program to correct the problems, followed by another FMRI to determine your progress, then creating a post-treatment strategy so progress continues.  Their success rate is amazing!  I know something about it, because I had a snowboarding accident seven years ago and ended up with a stroke-like brain injury.  When I attended Cognitive Fx, I had a 65% brain improvement as measured by my final FMRI.  My results were amazing, and it has changed my life.  It would help Alex, too, if he could just figure out how to get enough money to pay for the treatment.

At the rate of his current wage, given his present capacity for work, it would take him a few years to raise the money he needs, even if he saved every cent he makes.  Insurance doesn’t cover this program, and his family is already paying off other medical bills. The program costs about $8,000, plus his flight, and the 5% that GoFundMe will keep.  Our goal is$8,900.  He’s a little shy about the fact that we’re doing this, but isn’t this what family and friends are for?  We help each other!  We make life better for others who are going through hard things.  I know it’s what Alex would do.   

I hope you’ll help him.  Will you share some of what you have to make life a little better for a guy who has great things to do with his life?  He deserves it.  And the world needs him to get better so he can do what he came here to do!