Hello everyone. Our dad, Derik was involved in a horrible accident and our family is trying to raise money for his rehabilitation, co-pays for medical equipment, medication and living expenses.
On February 16, 2023, he was on his way home from work and had to pull over to the side of the road. His body was struck by a vehicle near Germantown, Montgomery County, Maryland as he was walking away from his work truck. The driver did not stop. They just kept going. God saw fit to put it on someone’s heart to call 911. We don’t know for sure, but we think he was without help for about an hour. EMS arrived and transported him to the local hospital and the Orthopedic on-call decided it was best to transport him to the Shock and Trauma Center in Baltimore. The accident broke his pelvis, left tibia and fibula, tore ligaments in both knees, and shattered his left ankle. To date, he’s had three blood transfusions and two corrective surgeries. He is scheduled for a third surgery after several weeks of physical and occupational therapy.
During this time, our parents were in the process of moving into his childhood home in Philadelphia. They did not renew the lease where they were and the accident happened a week before it was time to turn in the keys. My siblings and I pulled together to put their home in a storage facility. Our mother let her job go to focus on the move because our father made the primary income and eight days after the accident his job fired him. He was under a contract that required him to be on-site and the company was unable to hold his position because of how long the recovery period is.
Our dad is a God-fearing man. He loves football. Growing up in Philly, of course, he's an Eagles fan. Our mom is from Alabama, so he had no choice but to yell Roll Tide/ Go Birds on Saturdays and Sundays He is a devoted husband and a father of five and we are all productive members of society. He’s a grandfather to five that call him Pop-Pop. He's a United States Marine Corps veteran and served 20 years as a Project Manager in D.C. contract security. He has always worked hard. His dedication to duty is unmeasurable. Now he is in recovery learning to walk again.
We are blessed that he is still alive, from what we're sure was an accident. But for the individual to keep going that was a choice. That person will never know how they upended our parents' livelihood. However, our dad is not angry or bitter and he prayed about the situation and for the individual that caused him harm. Unfortunately, nothing came from the investigation conducted by the Maryland State Troopers.
We are calling on the community to help in any way. If you can find it in your hearts to be a blessing in our parents’ lives, please consider donating. Thank you for taking the time to read our dad’s story.