Just out of high school, Rob was involved in a car accident that left him paralyzed from the sternum down.  Although he would be confined to a wheel chair, the direction his life took was positive.  He not only survived – he thrived!  Rob’s rehab got him back to weightlifting and he went on to compete in two Paralympic games (in Barcelona, Spain and Atlanta).  Along the way, Rob began to work at Sharing and Caring Hands in Minneapolis as a manager of Mary’s Place.  More than just doing a job, Rob became a father figure and mentor to hundreds of homeless youth who frequented the Teen Center he ran. 

Last January Rob became very sick and was hospitalized.  Diagnosed with an abscess on his spine, he underwent his first surgery.  Unfortunately, he endured nine additional surgeries due to infections, before he was transferred to the Mayo Clinic. 

A twelve-hour surgery at Mayo involved taking the old rods out of his back, replacing them and adding an additional one.  However, during this rehab, one of his vertebrae holding the screws in broke.  In July he had another eight-hour surgery – with rods extending the length of his back down to his tailbone.

 Rob has only been able to work a few weeks since January and will not be able to return to work until he is fully healed.  And now, because of his surgeries, he needs a new wheelchair and a new accessible van to get around. We are working to raise funds to help him with this expense as well as house expenses while he continues to recover.