Help Mike Recover His Mobility!

You can help now. Mike Pankonin is a wonderful man who works hard and cares deeply for others. He is a loving husband, an outstanding father, a humble veteran, a beloved friend, a gracious mentor and was dedicated to community service as a volunteer Firefighter amongst many other things. Mike was on a service call eight hours from home when he inexplicably lost consciousness and fell. Consequently, he broke three vertebrae in his neck. A woman working the hotel front desk witnessed the fall and began CPR which broke four of his ribs and saved his life. Upon arrival at the hospital, Mike regained consciousness, but is paralyzed from the neck down.

     He underwent surgery the following day in which the surgeon cleaned and reconstructed the injured vertebrae. While the surgery was a success and he is very slowly regaining feeling back throughout his body. He still doesn’t have full control of his extremities.  Mike was transported to a hospital closer to home earlier this week. He isn’t able to grasp anything and is currently undergoing physical therapy so he can learn to walk again. Mike is staying positive and is hopeful to regain full control of his arms and legs. There are no guarantees he will ever get back to being fully functional, which is where we ask for your help.

     Mike is the sole provider for his family and his job is physically demanding. With the extent of his injuries, after his sick leave and vacation time are gone, his family won’t have a steady income. In addition, there are other major expenses coming that need taken care of before Mike’s homecoming on the March 28th. In order for Mike to gain mobility he will need a powered wheel chair. Also he requires a handicap accessible van and a ramp into his home. Furthermore, home renovations will be a necessity including a handicap accessible bathroom which means rail systems, a new bathtub, wider hallways, and possibly shorter/lower cabinets. For this reason, we call on you. Funds being raised will go directly to assisting with these necessities that will improve his quality of life. Anything funds remaining will assist Mike’s family in paying their bills and keep them afloat until other means of income become available. You can instantly help this veteran get back on his feet. Thank you so much for your time and support, if you cannot donate, please share the link so we can support him like he has supported so many in our community.