Hi, my name is Brison Manandic. My father, Cameron Manandic, was involved in a devastating firework accident last night on July 4th, 2020. He loaded a defective mortar into a mortar tube, and it failed to launch into the air. It exploded inside the tube instantly and my dad was within inches of the mortar tube. The mortar blew his right hand in half, leaving his thumb, pointer, and middle finger dangling from his hand and tendons torn or gone. It was completely torn in half by the explosion.
I immediately drove him to the hospital, he was in shock and bleeding , and he was operated on this morning, July 5th. We didn’t think his hand could be saved, but thanks to the surgeons at OHSU and the prayers of my friends and family, my dad’s right hand was reconstructed, except his pointer finger had to be amputated. He is going to need multiple surgeries, physical therapy, and a heavily extended hospital stay to reconstruct his hand fully and to allow it to be functional.
My dad is a loving and amazing father to me and my four brothers (Kailan, Ronnie, Luke, and Keala) and loving husband of my mother, Tammy Newsome Manandic. He loves to spend time with us and supports me, Luke, and Keala at our soccer games. He was an excellent soccer player himself, making the Olympic Development Regional team in Hawaii as a goalkeeper at age 16. We learned from the best.
Our family has had a tough year; my brother Luke had extensive surgery and PT at OHSU for a freak broken elbow and has a metal plate and a lot of screws in his arm, and my 8 year old brother Keala spent time at OHSU for stomach issues. My dad is still trying to catch up financially and this is going to be an expensive recovery for him. We are a one income family and I don’t want him to worry about how he’s going to pay for this, just concentrate on healing.
Please consider donating to help my dad and my family face this difficult recovery together.
All donations will go to help pay for my dad’s surgeries and physical therapy.
Any donation helps! Thank you so much!
God Bless you,
Brison Manandic