Arvind Lall

On Saturday, January 10, 2015, Arvind Lall, while competing in a social squash match, broke his neck.

His spine was fractured into pieces around the lower cervical vertebrae, the spinal cord was compressed and additional damage occurred in the thoracic region of his back. As he lay on the court, still conscious, Arvind realized he was paralyzed.

That morning, Arvind’s day had begun at home in an ordinary way. He got out of bed, attended to personal needs and made breakfast. He walked up and down stairs and took the dog out for a quick run. He settled into a chair in his home office to email clients in his private legal practice. He played with his son, Christopher, a sixth-grader at The Green Vale School, and leaned over and hugged his wife, Fran Tria, who was working on lesson plans for her Great Neck South High School US History class. Then he changed clothes and drove to play squash.

At the hospital, two surgeons operated on Arvind’s injured spine. They concluded he had a C6 – C7 spinal injury, immobilizing his body below the chest. A breathing tube was inserted through his mouth, where it would remain for almost two weeks, and his spine was reconstructed and stabilized. Deeply sedated, with medical lines running in and out of his body, Arvind would not recognize for days the concerned visitors at his intensive care unit bedside.

One of the operating surgeons at the hospital told Arvind’s wife, Fran, her husband was unlikely to ever walk again. The other said there was only a very slight chance, due to the spinal injury level. As Fran came to grips with a new reality, she made a decision. She would hope, for her family’s sake, that Arvind could make the best recovery possible. They would all hope that one day Arvind could hold a squash racquet and coach his son again in the sport they both love.

Following his recovery at the hospital from double pneumonia, Arvind was flown to Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia on January 28. There, his long journey of intensive rehabilitation begins.

As news of Arvind’s injury spread, many people wondered how they could help. Arvind’s lively personality, natural social gifts, and inherent kindness have brought him into many lives. Now, people want to do something for him.

While Arvind has good insurance coverage, additional resources will be necessary to assure the long-term outpatient rehabilitation he will require. The Lall family house will need major modifications in preparation for Arvind’s return, including those that will allow him to use a wheelchair and regain as much independence as possible. A specially-modified van will be needed for transportation. These and other critical expenses that are not covered by insurance can quickly climb to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

To help with the financial burden of Arvind’s uninsured expenses, a fundraising campaign in his honor has been established with HelpHOPELive, a trusted nonprofit organization that has been providing community-based fundraising guidance to patients and their families for more than 30 years. All donations, which are tax-deductible, are held by HelpHOPELive in the New York Spinal Cord Injury Fund and are administered by HelpHOPELive for injury-related expenses only.

Arvind has chosen to fundraise with HelpHOPELive in part because HelpHOPELive assures fiscal accountability of funds raised and tax deductibility for donors. Donors can be sure that funds donated will be used only to pay or reimburse medically-related expenses. To make a tax-deductible donation to this fundraising campaign, click on the Donate Now button.

For more information, please contact HelpHOPELive at 800.642.8399.

Thank you for joining us in helping Arvind by making a contribution today.