Nick Alicea Paralyzed After Armed Robbery

NICK  ALICEA  PARALYZED  AFTER  ARMED  ROBBERY   My name is Torey Parker and I want to tell you about the life-changing, heartbreaking event that recently occurred with my grandson.  Nick came into my life when he was just 3 years old and his smiling face- and dimples- captivated me instantly.  It is overwhelmingly important to me to make his recovery as comfortable and smooth as possible so I can see that heart-warming smile of his again. Imagine making arrangements to meet up with someone to sell some of your personal belongings just to raise rent money only to be viciously attacked, paralyzed and left for dead.  That is what happened to my 21 year old grandson, Nick Alicea Santiago (Riddell), outside Columbia, Missouri the afternoon of September 28, 2020.  When Nick realized the dangerous situation he was in, he attempted to drive away from the meeting. One of his multiple assailants began shooting at him with one of the shots puncturing a lung and piercing his spine, shattering a vertebra and causing him to lose all feeling in his lower body.  The immediate paralysis resulted in Nick crashing into a tree at 60 miles per hour. In Nick’s own words “The only reason I am still alive is because I started screaming for Siri to call 911.  I heard it dialing and knew to start listing off everything since 911 phone calls start recording the second the dial tone starts.”  I remember reading the news article on-line the next day.  It just said that the victim called emergency personnel and thought that statement made it seem like nothing serious had occurred when, in fact, a young man’s life was changed forever. Nick was rushed to the hospital but doctors are unable to remove the bullet in his spine. He is now paralyzed from his shoulder blades down and is trying to come to terms that he will probably never walk again. Nick and his family now need your help as they move forward with their new reality of living with a spinal cord injury. Spinal cord injury victims don’t have organizations like the victims of debilitating diseases that affect your ability to walk. Nick has been playing soccer when he was about 5 years old and had taken up rock climbing in the last year.  He recently got a motorcycle and was looking forward to the adventures he would have on it. He has an aptitude for auto mechanics and was hoping to start vocational school in January.  These are just a few of the activities that will no longer be available to Nick as he begins the next chapter of his life. Nick was in training for a new job so was not working full time and has no health benefits.  Maybe in the future he will be able to live independently but, for the foreseeable future, he will need to move back to his parent’s home when he leaves the rehabilitation facility in a few weeks. His parent’s home has a gravel driveway and gravel walkway to the several steps that lead to the front door.  A major priority right now is to make modifications that will make the home accessible by wheelchair.  Nick’s younger sister and one of his grandfathers also live with his parents so the family plans to convert their dining room to a bedroom for Nick.  This will entail enclosing the room, which will have no windows, adding doors, building a closet and making the room handicap friendly.  They don’t know yet but it is likely that the rehab facility will recommend a hospital bed or some other type of mechanical assistance for Nick to get in and out of bed. Another concern is adapting the bathroom to make the shower accessible for Nick by modifying it from a bathtub to a shower that he can pull into.  Things that most of us take for granted, like getting out of bed and taking a shower will be major hurdles for some time to come.  Nick’s mom has been unemployed since the beginning of the year so will be available to help him as he adapts to his new normal. We know the life-altering changes to the life of a 22 year old with so much potential will also take an emotional strain on Nick.  We hope that he will be able to get counseling to help him deal with all of the changes to his life, dreams and future. These are just the initial challenges the family knows they will face in the upcoming months.  There will surely be many more as Nick begins this new chapter of his life. Being a one income family, these additional expenses will put a tremendous strain on them. These challenges are enough of a burden without being worried about the expenses involved as they work towards adjusting and adapting to their new ways of living.  Nick recently sent a message to all of his family members in which he said “I am going to try my hardest every day to get better.”  Any amount of money you can contribute will go a long way towards helping Nick and his family.  Please consider helping them making the changes that are needed for Nick to adjust to his new life.  Your compassion and generosity are deeply appreciated during these dark times for all of Nick’s family.