Fundraising for an accessible vehicle; allowing my brother James to continue building back his future.

On September 22, 2022, my brother, James, suffered a series of seizures that lead to an anoxic brain injury; one that had doctors stumped when he wouldn't wake up.

4 days later we headed to the hospital to discuss pulling life support, when James surprised doctors by blinking on command and wiggling his toes.

During the next month James showed little growth. He was no longer blinking on command or wiggling toes; doctors had little hope for what his future would look like. However, James' family could see the subtle hints, such as a smile at the right moment, that led us to believe he was still in there.

We had to fight hard to get a rehabilitation facility to take James. The doctors sense of a bleak future kept rehabs from accepting him. Family was repeatedly told James would never be himself again, if he did come back it wouldn't be as we knew him.

A cousin of ours happened to know a recruiter at Monroe Community Hospital in Rochester, NY. She explained to us that based on the information sent from the hospital, James would not be accepted at MCH, but based on what the family was saying she was willing to meet him and evaluate whether he could be accepted.

The night before evaluation, with help from family and wonderful nurses, James began to speak. He would leave the Rochester General Hospital the day after Halloween. As he was able to speak I asked him what he would like to be for Halloween. He answered "a fish" because his nurses kept calling him a piranha (due to his need to bite anything near his mouth).

James spent 2 years at Monroe Community Hospital where he worked to regain brain function, and build new neurological pathways. He was able to regain his intellectual function, and left the center using a walker.

Since then James has been staying at the Happiness House in Canandaguia, NY where he continues to grow and gain further mobility. James can walk short distances with a cane, and although his hand function is not what it was, he still is in the kitchen always trying to become a better and better chef.

Although James has come such a long way, he still faces many obstacles on his journey.

Before this happened, James was a brilliant chef, who was privileged to study abroad in Italy. When James was in the hospital, every day I'd read to him. I chose a book I'd found in his car called "Setting the Table" by Danny Meyer; it was all about creating great hospitality. Of course that's the kind of book I'd have found in his car.

We currently are looking for funds to help support James get back to a life where he can continue to build a future. A great first step for James, would be to have a car that could be made accessible for him, allowing him to commute on his own.

Some of James' goals for the future include:

*being able to commute on his own

*being able to swim

*being able to walk at a community level

*being able to work (hopefully one day again in a busy dining club... but until his body allows, an accessible made food truck may be a future business venture.

If there are any remaining funds, we will use it to help James accomplish his goals, further contributing to his independence.

Photo by Elif Altinbasak

In support of this GoFundMe, James and I will also be co-releasing a song we wrote together. The song tells a story from two perspectives, of having faith, and what it was like when we didn't know if James was coming back.

"PRETTY LADY" will release on 11/11/25.

One of my visitor tags was really time-stamped with 11:11, and the sense of hope it gave me really stuck.

Pre-save "Pretty Lady" with this link: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/kaylincervini/pretty-lady-feat-james-cervini

Album Art by Paige Pensgen- Simpson