RIDE THE WAVE: Support Wavey Davey

Co-organized

Michael Noonan and 2 others are organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

Michael Noonan (Hopkins 1995) and Bruce Casagrande (NYIT/Germany/U Denver) are opening up this GoFundMe campaign to help a very close friend, David ('Wavey') Leach, who suffered a severe spinal cord injury in December of 2022 playing Box Lacrosse in England.

(Note: all donations are tax-exempt as they are going directly to The Global Lacrosse Foundation, which is a non-profit 501 (c)(3), run by Bruce Cassagrande, before being sent to Wavey).

Wavey's life immediately changed overnight. As a cranial/spinal expert, Davey was fully aware of the severity of the injury and the life-changing journey he and the family will now face.

Wavey has an impact on every person he meets in life. He is kind, generous and thoughtful, someone who always gives his all to his family, friends, community and work life (basically everyone he ever meets!)

Wavey was a phenomenal athlete: Captain of the English Box Lacrosse Team, International World Lacrosse Player for the Welsh National Lacrosse Team (5x), drafted by the Colorado Monmouth in 2015 after his performance at the 2015 World Box Championships (hosted by the Onondaga Nation, south of Syracuse, New York). Wavey made the Colorado Mammoth professional box team but was unable to play for them, yet he was that talented as a lacrosse player and athlete.

Wavey is also a husband and a father of two young girls (under the age of 10). As the main income earner in his family, the family is facing a significant loss of income for the foreseeable future. Wavey will not be able to return to his work, as an osteopath, after he leaves the hospital and rehabilitation facility sometime in the fall of 2023.

Additionally, Wavey's home and vehicle will need to be adjusted and remodeled to accommodate someone who cannot walk and who needs a wheelchair (think: widening doorways, certain house passageways, completely redoing bathrooms, and entry and exit ways to/from their home, etc.). These are just some of the many expenses that his family will be facing, not to mention the specialized care and rehabilitation expenses he will face once he returns home which can be daunting. With your help everything is possible.

Here is the UK-based GoFundMe page with over 1,200 ($100K +) donations to date:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/david-leach-wavey-spinal-recovery-journey

If you want to learn more about Wavey's's story: here is his support page:

https://supportwaveydavey.co.uk/

Here is his Facebook support page:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1353900125451873

And finally, please take a look at my Facebook profile --> Michael S. Noonan <-- you will see that my background picture is highlighting this cause (SupportWaveyDavey.co.uk).

We, Wavey's US-based friends, are spearheading the US campaign to support Wavey from this side of the ocean and raise awareness for Wavey's cause. This US-based GoFundMe for Wavey will supplement the European effort.

We have partnered with the Global Lacrosse Foundation, founded and led by Bruce Casagrande, which is a 501 (c3) non-profit promoting Wavey's cause. 100% of all funds raised will go directly to Davey's team for his support.

By having this US-based GoFundMe charity we believe that Americans will have more confidence in what we are trying to achieve: to support Wavey from this side of the Atlantic.

In the US we have already had a presence at the NCLL Lacrosse Championships at Penn State which took place from May 13-14, as well as the Men's Div 1 Lacrosse Championship quarterfinals in Annapolis, MD, on May 21, 2023.

Additional plans are being made to have a presence at the 2023 World Lacrosse Championships in San Diego, CA, June 21 - July 1, the Lake Placid Lacrosse Tournament, July 31-Aug 6, and as well as other lacrosse-centric events such as youth camps across the United States.

You can meet Wavey's US-based team in person at most of the events mentioned above, and you are 100% encouraged to donate directly and also put together local fundraisers (car wash, fun run, etc) as well. All of these donations will ultimately end up funding the support for Wavey and his wonderful family.

The name of the campaign is: "RIDE THE WAVE - Support Wavey Davey" --> let's get Wavey Davey back on his feet again!