Empower Dave Bayton's Road to Recovery

Hello

This is Deb (Jude), I'm Dave Bayton's mum, and I would like to tell you his story.

On July 12th of this year, my son had an unexpected medical injury. His legs became numb as he arrived at work that morning. By the time he reached his desk, he couldn't feel his body.

After being rushed to the hospital, a neurosurgeon operated on him and the diagnosis was that a disc in his neck had broken apart. Consequently, his spinal cord was immediately damaged, by both compression and the shard of disc which was also in his spine.

The surgery was successful, in that his disc was replaced, but the damage was already done.

After two weeks in the ICU, Dave is currently entering week five of rehab in Dallas. His paralysis is from the chest down. Fortunately, he has the use of his arms, but limited dexterity in his hands and fingers. He has already worked hard to improve his hands since being in rehab and is learning how to be as independent as possible.

His discharge date is currently scheduled for the second week of September and as both he and Natalie (his wife) face an enormous change in their life, not to mention many challenges, we want to try and help them as much as possible.

Since this happened to Dave, our family has been touched by so many kind messages and generosity. Others have asked to help in some way, and I requested that they wait until we could have some type of fundraiser, and that is what we are doing now.

Although Dave's insurance will help significantly with some of the basic equipment he will need (manual wheelchair, a hoist to move him, and a hospital bed) there will still be co-pays and many other pieces of equipment he must have (shower wheelchair, toilet wheelchair, electric wheelchair, to name a few) not covered by insurance - there will also be a plethora of medical supplies for his daily care.

As you can imagine, this has been a nightmare for Dave, Natalie, and those who love him. But he has set such an amazing example to us all with his positive attitude, and strong desire to improve. Dave is determined not to accept any limitations of his injuries. He's already trying to figure out how he can get his grill adapted so he can still cook for all of us (he makes the best BBQ).

Any monies raised here will be used to purchase specific items, and I will report back to everyone what has been bought.

Please don't feel pressured to help. It is hard for all of us to get by anymore. But as so many people wanted to do something for Dave, this seems the best way to go about it.

If you can help, your kindness will be very much appreciated. This will assist Dave and Natalie at the start of this very challenging journey.

Thank you so much.

The family of Dave Bayton