Jeff Jr’s recovery fundraiser

On May 19 Jeff Richmond Jr was involved in a car accident while out of town that resulted in severe head trauma. He was brought to the hospital unresponsive and emergency surgery was required to help relieve the swelling and bleeding in his brain. By the grace of God and the tireless effort by the medical staff they were able to get his vitals stabilized but the accident left Jeff in a coma. As you can imagine the heart ache and fear was overwhelming as his wife and family rushed to be by his side. The initial prognosis from the doctors was that he had less than a 5% chance of ever waking up. The first five days were emotionally exhausting as the family saw a man once full of life, laying unresponsive with countless cuts, scratches and swelling from the impact of the accident.  It was his wife Phaedra who continued to believe he would fight through the insurmountable odds and in an attempt to keep things positive she joked that he was always late and that we needed to just give him more time. Unsure if he could even hear her she would remind him of her love and recount the many reasons he needed to pull through. She may have even told him he could buy all the Jordans and CrossFit gear he wanted as soon as he got better.  It was on the morning of May 24 that Jeff reminded all of us of that as a former Marine and avid cross fitter he wasn’t about to quit. At this point each morning they lowered the sedation that helps shield him from the immense pain caused by his head trauma and attempt to check for both reflexes and level of consciousness. When the doctor sternly ordered job to open his eyes, to all of our amazement they fluttered and when the doctor asked him to squeeze his hand he responded.  The look on the doctors face was awe as he stood there for what seemed like forever holding two thumbs up. Jeff had beat the 5% odds and made the first big step to recovery. Although this moment was a high we were quickly reminded of the challenges that he faces. He remains sedated; battling blood pressure, brain swelling, minor infections from being constrained to a bed, and remains on life-support while his body slowly heals.   We are all confident that Jeff will continue to heal and pray without ceasing that he will make a full recovery. His faith in God is strong and the countless friends and family praying for him daily give us all hope. This GoFundMe page has been created to help offset the medical bills but also to help allow his loving wife to be by his side throughout this process. Her presence and love are surely giving him strength for the days ahead. Jeff and Phaedra are the proud parents of a beautiful and intelligent daughter who has shown great strength through this confusing and upsetting season.   She would like to thank their family,  and many friends from their neighborhood and local CrossFit community who have gone above and beyond to help care for their daughter and help keep her mind occupied so she doesn’t have to think about her daddy’s situation. Your donation is greatly appreciated and prayers are invited for continued healing for Jeff along with comfort for his family.