Bob Curry needs our help

Many of you know Bob as the fun, strong-willed , witty, intelligent animal-loving guy he is. As a nurse he devotes his life to helping others.

What many of you may not know is the terrible medical odyssey he has been suffering through the past two years.

In March 2021, during the height of Covid lockdowns, he had major back surgery. This involved an 11-hour surgery and the insertion of rods and screws to correct his damaged spine. Months of horrific pain followed, plus a slow recovery. So slow, he could not begin physio until 6 months had passed.

In Sept 2021 he fractured his knee and had partial knee replacement surgery done in Dec 2021. During this time he lived with knee pain, awaiting surgery. This surgery was not successful and unfortunately, he required a second surgery, this time a full knee replacement which was done in May 2022.

At this point Bob had been living more than a year in pain, unable to go back to his beloved nursing career and surviving on Disability Benefits.

Hopeful that his agonizing journey of pain was behind him, he ventured outside slowly and tried to get some semblance of his life back. As fate would have it, he was cycling on a beautiful Fall day in Toronto when he was struck and run over by a car. He was wearing a helmet which saved his life, but he suffered a major concussion, brain bleed, sprained wrist and inflammation to his knee surgery site.

You would hope his story would take an upturn, but sadly it gets worse. In Nov 2022 he noticed new pain in his back and numbness in his legs. His legs began to give out on him and he began to fall at unexpected times. In December he developed Covid and bilateral pneumonia which was later diagnosed as Long Covid.

He was finally able to see his back surgeon this month and received the devastating news that two of the screws had become dislodged from his spine and the stabilizing rods were bent. This was likely a direct result of the car/cycling accident. Not only that but a sizeable cyst was discovered on his spine along with crushed discs and compression injury. Left untreated, this will lead to paralysis.

Our inimitable Bobby, always facing his challenges with bravery and hope, has been dealt a blow he is struggling to deal with. Many days he feels like giving up. He lives in agony. He tries to find the humor in little things but then he breaks down and cries. He tries not to give in to despair.

The fix for his situation is another 11-hour surgery to repair the damage. He cannot have this surgery until he is cleared by his respirologist as it is a risk to his life to undergo anesthesia for such a long period. He is currently awaiting an appointment with his specialist, just trying to get through each day at a time.

I have started this fundraiser because Bob has so much on his plate right now. To add to his stress, he is worried about his finances. He has now been on Disability for 2 years and it does not cover his rent, utilities and groceries. His debts are piling up. The one thing we can do for him is to help take his financial worries away. We can pray. Call him. He needs support and he is too proud to ask for it.

Please help by donating to his fundraiser.