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BRAIN INJURY STRIKES OUT MINOR LEAGUE UMPIRE
I dedicated 10 years of my life working in the Minor Leagues striving to become a Major League Baseball umpire. Part of that journey took me to Caracas, Venezuela, where I was working in a professional winter league to improve my skills and enhance my chances of becoming one of the 78 Major League umpires in the US. My supervisors in the minors believed I could certainly umpire very well and I impressed them. But I was slow to make it to Triple A because they wanted to have a good, solid, experienced umpire in the Minor Leagues. That is what my former supervisors have told me since after my accident when I could actually communicate. Then I was beginning to impress the Big League supervisors who saw me when I reached Triple-A, as they favored my style of umpiring and liked the way I dealt with people. It was similar to that of the Big League Umps. Essentially I could handle myself as a person on the field. Plus I had many MLB umpire friends with whom I had umpired and instructed in the winter when they were students at the Academy of Professional Umpiring in Florida. Because of that, my confidence had never been higher. Then, in an instant, my world collapsed and changed forever. My three partners and two Venezuelan friends and I were involved in a deadly car accident. One of my Venezuelan friends and I were ejected from the automobile. Unfortunately, my friend died and I suffered life-threatening injuries. Needless to say, I was lucky to live through it but my dreams died as I lay in a foreign hospital for over a month in an induced coma fighting for my life. Eventually, I was flown back to home Phoenix where I began an intensive 4-year rehabilitation process. As you might suspect, I have exhausted my insurance but still suffer from serious after-effects. I am a fighter but have reached a point where I cannot handle my medical needs without help. I have fought my way back from double vision and the daily use of an eyepatch. I have progressed from a wheelchair to a walker to a gait belt to walking on my own. I have advanced from requiring daily assistance for personal hygiene and grooming to an independent lifestyle that has helped to restore my self-pride and dignity. I can even drive a car unassisted and you’ll never know how that simple act can revive your sense of independence. In spite of all my progress, I still have issues that are overwhelming and not covered by insurance. For every waking hour, I have a severe case of tinnitus ($75,000 for the only proven reduction of tinnitus) which is an extremely loud ringing in my fractured right ear. My other needs include a major urological issue ($16,100), speech therapy for a very strained voice which is slurred and hoarse (approximately $11,525), a substantially high number of dental needs ($17,450) and hundreds of hours of neuropsychology ($31,525). None of these conditions are covered by insurance. My paycheck barely pays my living expenses. Doctors have assured me that I will have to live with the effects of my traumatic brain injury for the rest of my life but I fight to stay as positive as I can, rather than dwelling on the myriad of negatives; and there are many ways my quality of life can be improved. I am very grateful to be alive and I take no pride in asking people for help. I am only doing so as a last resort and will be eternally grateful for any little bit of help you can provide. The total of all my medical expenses equals $151,600. I appreciate any help you can give me. I am determined to win this unexpected battle.
Any little bit you can pitch in would help tremendously as every dollar means the world to me right now during this long healing process.. Whatever you can afford would be life-changing. You will not be forgotten! Please help spread the word!
I dedicated 10 years of my life working in the Minor Leagues striving to become a Major League Baseball umpire. Part of that journey took me to Caracas, Venezuela, where I was working in a professional winter league to improve my skills and enhance my chances of becoming one of the 78 Major League umpires in the US. My supervisors in the minors believed I could certainly umpire very well and I impressed them. But I was slow to make it to Triple A because they wanted to have a good, solid, experienced umpire in the Minor Leagues. That is what my former supervisors have told me since after my accident when I could actually communicate. Then I was beginning to impress the Big League supervisors who saw me when I reached Triple-A, as they favored my style of umpiring and liked the way I dealt with people. It was similar to that of the Big League Umps. Essentially I could handle myself as a person on the field. Plus I had many MLB umpire friends with whom I had umpired and instructed in the winter when they were students at the Academy of Professional Umpiring in Florida. Because of that, my confidence had never been higher. Then, in an instant, my world collapsed and changed forever. My three partners and two Venezuelan friends and I were involved in a deadly car accident. One of my Venezuelan friends and I were ejected from the automobile. Unfortunately, my friend died and I suffered life-threatening injuries. Needless to say, I was lucky to live through it but my dreams died as I lay in a foreign hospital for over a month in an induced coma fighting for my life. Eventually, I was flown back to home Phoenix where I began an intensive 4-year rehabilitation process. As you might suspect, I have exhausted my insurance but still suffer from serious after-effects. I am a fighter but have reached a point where I cannot handle my medical needs without help. I have fought my way back from double vision and the daily use of an eyepatch. I have progressed from a wheelchair to a walker to a gait belt to walking on my own. I have advanced from requiring daily assistance for personal hygiene and grooming to an independent lifestyle that has helped to restore my self-pride and dignity. I can even drive a car unassisted and you’ll never know how that simple act can revive your sense of independence. In spite of all my progress, I still have issues that are overwhelming and not covered by insurance. For every waking hour, I have a severe case of tinnitus ($75,000 for the only proven reduction of tinnitus) which is an extremely loud ringing in my fractured right ear. My other needs include a major urological issue ($16,100), speech therapy for a very strained voice which is slurred and hoarse (approximately $11,525), a substantially high number of dental needs ($17,450) and hundreds of hours of neuropsychology ($31,525). None of these conditions are covered by insurance. My paycheck barely pays my living expenses. Doctors have assured me that I will have to live with the effects of my traumatic brain injury for the rest of my life but I fight to stay as positive as I can, rather than dwelling on the myriad of negatives; and there are many ways my quality of life can be improved. I am very grateful to be alive and I take no pride in asking people for help. I am only doing so as a last resort and will be eternally grateful for any little bit of help you can provide. The total of all my medical expenses equals $151,600. I appreciate any help you can give me. I am determined to win this unexpected battle.
Any little bit you can pitch in would help tremendously as every dollar means the world to me right now during this long healing process.. Whatever you can afford would be life-changing. You will not be forgotten! Please help spread the word!
Organizer
John Woods
Organizer
Phoenix, AZ