I'd like you to try
a little experiment. Don't move, in any way, for just one minute.
Aggravating, isn't
it? If you have an itch, you can't scratch it. Something in your eye?
Too bad. Nose running? Tough.
You now have some
idea of what Chad Larivee has been going through since July 29th.
Chad is a
43-year-old Taunton firefighter with a wife and three kids. He spent
eight years as a hoseman, routinely entering burning buildings. More
recently, he drove Taunton's Engine 1, the city's busiest pumper.
During the past 17 years, he put his life on the line. That's what
firefighters do. But, while helping a fellow jake with some roof
repair on his day off, Chad fell 30 feet from a ladder and suffered a
severe spinal cord injury. He was immediately paralyzed.
He was medflighted
to Rhode Island Hospital, where he underwent 9 hours of surgery.
After almost a month in their ICU, eating via a feeding tube and
unable to speak because of a tracheotomy, he was moved to Spaulding
Rehab in Charlestown. He remains there today, doing the hard work to
try and regain some mobility. Currently, he is a tetraplegic. He has
limited left arm movement only.
Since the injury,
Chad's fellow firefighters say he has remained tremendously upbeat
despite his troubles. And they'd know because they've been there for
him. In Rhode Island, there was always at least one of the Taunton
crew by his bedside 24/7. At Spaulding, a Taunton firefighter stays
overnight, every night – 10pm to 6am – so Chad never wakes up
alone. They scratch those itches and do whatever else is physically
needed. Some firefighters in Worcester known as “The Ramp Gang”,
assisted by their brothers from Taunton, Scituate, Franklin and
Northbridge, donated their time and skills to build Chad an
ADA-compliant wheelchair ramp at his home. It is hoped Chad will be
able to return home in November.
But there's a lot
more work needed and the funds to do that work are staggering. Chad
will need a specialized wheelchair and a chair van, a residential
elevator, a mounted lift in his home, conversion of his bathroom and
other spaces. It will cost hundreds of thousands and none of that
specialty equipment is covered via insurance.
To raise what's
needed, his friends in Taunton have set up a fundraising event on
Sunday October 12th. Starting at noon, at The Jockey Club
in Raynham, there will be five live bands; fun games like jump
houses, bowling and face painting for kids (children 12 and under get
in free); food and drinks; some superb items up for bid via auction
(for example, all-expenses-paid trips to San Diego to see the
Patriots play the Chargers or to California for the USC – Notre
Dame game.) And you won't miss the Pats game if you go; you can see
them take on the Buffalo Bills via a huge projector. More
information is available at http://www.chadlariveefund.org/#!blog/c35h
(or, if you can't make it that day and the
spirit moves you, you can make a donation anyway.)
I'll be there on
Sunday. I hope you will, too.
