Bishop Stephen A. Thomas

Bishop Stephen Thomas and his lovely wife  Dana Thomas was spending time in Atlanta celebrating their 34 year Anniversary on July 6th.  The next day they were on their way back to Dalton Ga. traveling with very congested traffic on I-75 N in Marietta Ga. Their vehicle came to a complete stop. Unbeknown to them, there was another vehicle behind them that didn't see the traffic stopping.  When he looked up, he slammed on his breaks to try to stop and plowed into the back of Bishop Thomas' vehicle pushing them into the vehicle that was in front of them.  The impact initially rendered Stephen unconscious and when he awakened, he was paralyzed from his shoulders down. He was transferred to the Regional Trauma Center at Kennestone Hospital where he was diagnosed with severe spinal cord trauma at levels C2-C4. He was in the hospital for 10 days with 7 of those days being in ICU.  He was then transferred to Shepherd Center where he received intensive rehabilitation for about 5hrs per day.  During his stay at Shepherd, he underwent several surgical procedures at the adjoining Piedmont Hospital which included a tracheotomy.  He was finally sent home on September 18th still with complete paralysis from the shoulders down confined to a specialized wheelchair that is operated by using his mouth.  He continues to receive home health care which includes physical and occupational therapies as well as skilled nursing care.

As you can imagine, the medical expenses are astronomical. Fortunately he has medical insurance, however the uncovered portions for his care are still outstanding and continuing to accrue. The person that hit them did not have adequate insurance to cover medical expenses, loss of vehicle nor loss of income.


From July 7th until this present moment, his wife has not left his side and she has been the primary care giver learning everything necessary to take care of him.  Unfortunately, she has to return to work on Oct. 24th in order to maintain the medical insurance.  At that point, he will need someone to step in and sit with him while his wife is at work.



We are asking for your donations to help cover the continuing medical expenses.  He is in need of a modified vehicle that he can roll in to and lock down while being transported to and from doctor's appointments and church.