Jon Atwater

As many of you know, Jon, in pursuit of his dream of building a house, fell off our deck in Colorado this summer. He fell eleven feet to the ground, breaking his neck and sustaining a spinal cord injury for the second time. He immediately said that he was paralyzed again, but he had survived. That was the first positive. The second positive was seeing that he was able to move his shoulders, and had slight movement in his right hand. Having gone through this before, I knew that any movement was a good sign, but I also knew that the road to recovery was going to be long. He was diagnosed as a C4,5 and 6 incomplete quadriplegic.

After three surgeries and a long stay in ICU, Jon arrived at Craig Rehabilitation Center in Denver ready for the hard work and challenge it takes to recover from a spinal cord injury. During his four month stay, he made amazing gains in his strength and mobility, but still has a long way to go to reach his potential. Jon is happy to be back home, and we are fortunate to have Project Walk, a spinal cord rehabilitation center only one hour from our home. Jon has started a specialized therapy program there, and is continuing to make progress. Research has shown that the first six months are critical to making the most of rehab efforts, and that people continue to make gains a year and a half to two years after the initial injury. He now has movement in all four limbs but is still unable to stand, and has limited use of his triceps and hands. Intensive therapy will give Jon the opportunity to regain the strength he needs to stand, and hopefully walk again. His drive and positive attitude are nothing short of incredible. His goal is to gain enough independence to return to teaching biology in the fall.

Even with insurance, Jon will face many uninsured injury-related expenses such as: Project Walk therapy, specialized durable equipment and home modifications –all necessary to allowing him greater independence.

To help offset such expenses, a fundraising campaign in Jon’s honor has been established with HelpHOPELive, a nonprofit organization that has been assisting the transplant community for 30 years. In 2000, they expanded their mission to include those who have sustained a catastrophic injury. All contributions are tax-deductible, are held by HelpHOPELive in the Southwest Spinal Cord Injury Fund, and are administered by HelpHOPELive for injury-related expenses only. If you would like to make a contribution, please click the DONATE NOW button.

Thank you in advance for your love and support during this time – together we can make a difference for Jon.

Jennifer Atwater