Bring Bill Sheehan Home
Donation protected
Greetings friends and family of Bill Sheehan,
I know it's been a while since our last update, but things in the brain injury department go very slowly, but oddly fast. Today (April 1st) marks the year anniversary of Dad's accident. It's been a long, stressful, very terrifying year, but here we all are. Thankfully.
I wanted to give you all a brief update on Wild Bill, and ask for more of your support. For as far as we've come, we have so much more to do.
As many of you know, Dad has been back in Western New York since August. Prior to that, he did a brief visit in Denver at Craig Hospital, but due to lack of progress as well as insurance stupidness was discharged to a skilled nursing facility in Hamburg, NY where he still resides. Although the care is very good, and the facility top notch, it's still a nursing home. Our goal from the start was to get Dad home, but we must do it safely.
Physically, dad is progressing, but the measurements are very small. He now can eat on his own, but he is not speaking with his voice, only with whispers, and only when answering a question. His biggest issue is initiation. For example, he may be hungry, but he can not initiate a converstation or even a motion to tell someone. He smiles when someone he recognizes comes into the room, but he can not initiate the words "hello", unless you ask him to say hello. He does still have his witty sense of humor, and has great long term memory, but we are unsure of his short term memory abillity, since communication is spotty.
So overall, it's still a heartbreaking tragedy for our family, but we are still hopeful we will get some of the man we knew back. Although we've received so many generous donations, the funds we raised have been depleted. Dad's care is about $500/day, and until last week has been coming entirely out of savings, retirement, and your donations. Medicare just got approved last Friday (yeah, a year later).
We now need your help to get him home. To do this, the house on Sickmon Ave needs some major renovations to make it handicap accessible. Mainly, we need a bathroom on the first floor (which is a major undertaking), we'll need transportation for him (hopefully a wheelchair accessible van), and we may need a second fulltime nurses aide to help with the daily care.
In short, we still need your help.
Ways to help:
1. Donate some cash (I know, lame, but VERY helpful)
2. Donate your time. Please, please go and see Dad. Make him laugh. Read him a book, bring him pictures, or just hold his hand while he sleeps. All of these things are very healing for him.
3.Consider donating your time for recreational therapy. Arrange for a vehicle to pick him and you up and take him SOMEPLACE. Hell, it could be Tim Hortons, and it would be a treat for him. This just takes a bit of planning and a bit of cash for the shuttle service, but he loves this.
4. Perhaps you or someone you know works in an industry where they can donate medical items, bathroom fixtures, handyman services, anything like that is welcomed.
5. Stop over at 46 sickmon av and help with some shoveling, gardening, or moving items. Marcy always has something she wants to do :)
6. Don't stop Billeaving. He's in there, we just need to help him back home.
Thank you all who have donated thus far. It has been a very remarkable year. We couldn't have come this far without your help. Special thanks to Dad's sister Peg, who has uprooted her life from Salem, OR to help dad with his recovery. Props to my mom and Peg, it's hard to be around this everyday. Somedays the hope flows like river, other days it's a drip from the faucet. Help us replish it, for we are forever grateful.
With much love and respect,
Laura Sheehan Roberts
I know it's been a while since our last update, but things in the brain injury department go very slowly, but oddly fast. Today (April 1st) marks the year anniversary of Dad's accident. It's been a long, stressful, very terrifying year, but here we all are. Thankfully.
I wanted to give you all a brief update on Wild Bill, and ask for more of your support. For as far as we've come, we have so much more to do.
As many of you know, Dad has been back in Western New York since August. Prior to that, he did a brief visit in Denver at Craig Hospital, but due to lack of progress as well as insurance stupidness was discharged to a skilled nursing facility in Hamburg, NY where he still resides. Although the care is very good, and the facility top notch, it's still a nursing home. Our goal from the start was to get Dad home, but we must do it safely.
Physically, dad is progressing, but the measurements are very small. He now can eat on his own, but he is not speaking with his voice, only with whispers, and only when answering a question. His biggest issue is initiation. For example, he may be hungry, but he can not initiate a converstation or even a motion to tell someone. He smiles when someone he recognizes comes into the room, but he can not initiate the words "hello", unless you ask him to say hello. He does still have his witty sense of humor, and has great long term memory, but we are unsure of his short term memory abillity, since communication is spotty.
So overall, it's still a heartbreaking tragedy for our family, but we are still hopeful we will get some of the man we knew back. Although we've received so many generous donations, the funds we raised have been depleted. Dad's care is about $500/day, and until last week has been coming entirely out of savings, retirement, and your donations. Medicare just got approved last Friday (yeah, a year later).
We now need your help to get him home. To do this, the house on Sickmon Ave needs some major renovations to make it handicap accessible. Mainly, we need a bathroom on the first floor (which is a major undertaking), we'll need transportation for him (hopefully a wheelchair accessible van), and we may need a second fulltime nurses aide to help with the daily care.
In short, we still need your help.
Ways to help:
1. Donate some cash (I know, lame, but VERY helpful)
2. Donate your time. Please, please go and see Dad. Make him laugh. Read him a book, bring him pictures, or just hold his hand while he sleeps. All of these things are very healing for him.
3.Consider donating your time for recreational therapy. Arrange for a vehicle to pick him and you up and take him SOMEPLACE. Hell, it could be Tim Hortons, and it would be a treat for him. This just takes a bit of planning and a bit of cash for the shuttle service, but he loves this.
4. Perhaps you or someone you know works in an industry where they can donate medical items, bathroom fixtures, handyman services, anything like that is welcomed.
5. Stop over at 46 sickmon av and help with some shoveling, gardening, or moving items. Marcy always has something she wants to do :)
6. Don't stop Billeaving. He's in there, we just need to help him back home.
Thank you all who have donated thus far. It has been a very remarkable year. We couldn't have come this far without your help. Special thanks to Dad's sister Peg, who has uprooted her life from Salem, OR to help dad with his recovery. Props to my mom and Peg, it's hard to be around this everyday. Somedays the hope flows like river, other days it's a drip from the faucet. Help us replish it, for we are forever grateful.
With much love and respect,
Laura Sheehan Roberts
Organizer
Laura Sheehan Roberts
Organizer
