Wednesday, February 17, 2021, at around midnight, I received a call from my youngest brother's girlfriend. They had been out night sledding with friends (something my brother enjoys) when things took a turn for the worse. My brother, Laramie, went down the hill backwards and hit a tree. It was obvious he had a concussion as there was a wound on his head and he was very confused and disoriented. He also could not walk and had to be carried back to his truck. It was at this time that I got the call. With the information I had from Laramie's girlfriend, Arie, I immediately got ahold of my parents and they instructed she call the paramedics.
The hill they were sledding on at Sunset Park wasn't far from where I lived so shortly after talking with my parents, I threw on my boots and made my way to where they were. When I arrived, Arie was still on the phone with paramedics and my brother was in agonizing pain. He could not move and was gasping for air. He informed police that his pain was at a 10 out of 10. It was obvious to me this wasn't something minor as my brother has never been one to complain about pain. He's always been a tough cookie.
Paramedics, followed by an ambulance, arrived not long after I had. They evaluated the situation and came to the conclusion that Laramie needed to be taken to the emergency room. As they helped my brother get out of the passenger side of his pickup, all I could do was stand aside and watch as he screamed in pain and apologized over and over again to the paramedics who had to help him stand to get into the stretcher. It felt like an eternity and I was terrified of what the outcome would be from all of this. At that point my parents had arrived and together, we followed the ambulance to St. Joes Hospital where he will remain for at least the next couple of days.
A CT scan was done the night he arrived and we found out the next morning that Laramie had broken his back in several different places. It was also confirmed that he did suffer from a concussion. Along with his broken back and concussion, we were told that he also has some fractured ribs and a punctured lung. Thankfully, he did not have any damage to his spinal chord.
Yesterday, Feb. 18th, Laramie went in for surgery. Six hours, one metal rod and sixteen screws later, he came out and I finally got to see him via Facetime. Despite the immense amount of pain he's in, his humor remains intact.
From what I understand, Laramie will have to wear a neck/back brace for the next few months with PT to follow.
I know my brother and he will come out of this stronger than ever. I also know that the medical expense of all of this will be a steep one. I want to reach out to my community in an effort to help fund these expenses. We currently do not know the exact cost but with the research that I've done, it can reach up to $100,000. Anything you can do to help is greatly appreciated and does not go unnoticed.
On behalf of my family, I want to thank everyone for your concern and your prayers. This has been an extremely scary situation for everyone involved and it means the world to all of us to have the support that we do. So thank you. Thank you for reading this. Thank you for your donation. And thank you for keeping my brother in your thoughts. This situation could have been so much worse and I am just thankful to still have him here with us.
The hill they were sledding on at Sunset Park wasn't far from where I lived so shortly after talking with my parents, I threw on my boots and made my way to where they were. When I arrived, Arie was still on the phone with paramedics and my brother was in agonizing pain. He could not move and was gasping for air. He informed police that his pain was at a 10 out of 10. It was obvious to me this wasn't something minor as my brother has never been one to complain about pain. He's always been a tough cookie.
Paramedics, followed by an ambulance, arrived not long after I had. They evaluated the situation and came to the conclusion that Laramie needed to be taken to the emergency room. As they helped my brother get out of the passenger side of his pickup, all I could do was stand aside and watch as he screamed in pain and apologized over and over again to the paramedics who had to help him stand to get into the stretcher. It felt like an eternity and I was terrified of what the outcome would be from all of this. At that point my parents had arrived and together, we followed the ambulance to St. Joes Hospital where he will remain for at least the next couple of days.
A CT scan was done the night he arrived and we found out the next morning that Laramie had broken his back in several different places. It was also confirmed that he did suffer from a concussion. Along with his broken back and concussion, we were told that he also has some fractured ribs and a punctured lung. Thankfully, he did not have any damage to his spinal chord.
Yesterday, Feb. 18th, Laramie went in for surgery. Six hours, one metal rod and sixteen screws later, he came out and I finally got to see him via Facetime. Despite the immense amount of pain he's in, his humor remains intact.
From what I understand, Laramie will have to wear a neck/back brace for the next few months with PT to follow.
I know my brother and he will come out of this stronger than ever. I also know that the medical expense of all of this will be a steep one. I want to reach out to my community in an effort to help fund these expenses. We currently do not know the exact cost but with the research that I've done, it can reach up to $100,000. Anything you can do to help is greatly appreciated and does not go unnoticed.
On behalf of my family, I want to thank everyone for your concern and your prayers. This has been an extremely scary situation for everyone involved and it means the world to all of us to have the support that we do. So thank you. Thank you for reading this. Thank you for your donation. And thank you for keeping my brother in your thoughts. This situation could have been so much worse and I am just thankful to still have him here with us.