Help Eric Brower's Aching Bones!

Last week Friday, my friend Eric Brower was about to teach a class when he suffered a grand mal seizure. Eric doesn't have a history of seizures, so it's already a concerning medical event, but it gets worse. When he fell he broke several bones: both arms, both shoulders, his sacrum, and he shattered his pelvis. The reason he broke so many bones, doctors have discovered, is because his bone density is frighteningly not-ideal. But they don't know why. Scans have shown that Eric has had multiple bone fractures in the past, including a chronic fracture in his spine that doctors say should have left him in constant, excruciating pain, but for some reason (again, unknown) hasn't. 



Needless to say,  the Browers' lives have been turned upside down. When Eric is released from the hospital, he and his wife Erin and their sons Ian and Grant (8 and 5) will be moving in with Erin's parents, who live in a ranch style house (no stairs), for the 12-16 weeks it will be before Eric can walk again. Erin and her mom have to take classes to learn how to help Eric move and perform everyday living activities safely. Erin is having to rearrange her work schedule to be home with Eric, and they could really use some morning childcare for Grant, who as a kindergartener at North Park Montessori only attends for half a day.

My goal is to raise $5,000 for Eric and Erin, to help with the sudden increased need of childcare and related expenses. 

I can't stress enough what a solid, thoughtful family the Browers are, more than deserving of a significant karmic kick-back. Once this past fall while I was coaching cross county and trying to round up a bunch of kindergarten and first grade boys I forgot that I was also supposed to  be parenting my four-year-old daughter Annie. Erin found Annie wandering around by herself on the verge of tears, guessed what had happened, pulled out some snacks, and made herself a friend for life. Annie does not take to people she doesn't know well, but when I eventually saw her again, on Erin's hip, she was in no hurry to come back to me.  I rushed over, saying thanks and apologizing, but Erin blew it off. It was no big deal. It's just what you do. 

I agree.  And I think we should all endorse that worldview by helping the Browers out during this difficult time. 

Thank you for your time and empathy, folks. 

~Josh