Friends of Tony UpdateThis page was last updated on June 4, 2006 |
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Among New FriendsTony continues to show great signs of healing. His doctors at Rancho Los Amigos are very pleased with his progress. To his relief, Tony can once again sit up in bed and he's expected to begin rehab in early May, providing him with even greater mobility by being in his wheelchair. Tony's target date to leave Rancho is May 17, where he will then return home with a fulltime live-in care giver. On a sad note, Mary Alice has moved out to be cared for by her parents.Every week, other close friends like Tami Tollefson continue their remarkable support for Tony, providing tireless hours of encouragement to their friend in need. If you can, please plan a visit, call or send a card to let Tony know you're thinking of him. Having friends and family visit, even briefly, helps provide him with much needed company and encouragement while he's recovering in the hospital.
The walls at Rancho are filled with artwork and crafts of those seriously handicapped men and women who were at one time patients of the hospital. Their work showcases the indomitable human spirit, as paraplegics and quadriplegics serve as models for others to be witness to how it is possible to find fulfillment in life despite serious disabilities. 
The professional and support staff at Rancho are world-renowned for igniting the light of hope in persons who thought they faced only darkness following a disabling illness or injury. By assisting each patient in building a personal bridge to independence, the Rancho team is able to help their patients get back to school, back to work, or back to their lives in their communities. The painting on the right is by Said (pronounced Sigh-EED) Abdelsayed, a former patient at Rancho. An Egyptian by birth, he came to the USA to study medicine. Said's studies were interrupted when a hit-and-run car accident left him paralyzed from the waist down. He undertook painting after that. While Tony would not label his talents as artistic, like those of Said's, he was an accomplished craftsman before his accident. Through the efforts of Mike Blackstone, Tony's long-time friend and owner of Air Combat, Tony has been mentoring a pair of younger protégés, letting them act as his hands for the things he can't do yet. With the full support of his family, friends like Mike, and the medical care provided by Rancho Los Amigos, Tony's personal bridge towards independence has had an optimistic start. Tony's Current Condition
The once large and very painful burn wound on Tony's right side is almost healed. The diligent wound care provided by St. Jude's helped close the wound tremendously, and his leg burns have cleared up remarkably well at Rancho. In addition, the two chronic bedsores, one that was on his tailbone and the other in the middle of his back, were "cut out" and successfully "flapped" over with patches of healthy skin. That's the reason that Tony came to Rancho, for their expertise in this type of surgery. To help him maintain steady nutrition, he has a feeding tube connected directly to his stomach.
At the moment, Tony currently faces one remaining challenge, which is to improve the function of his right arm. There was extensive nerve damage to his right elbow, which has immobilized the joint, and it's a constant source of pain. Tony will require very specialized orthopedic surgery to restore mobility and strength in the arm without incurring further nerve damage. To keep up with the latest developments, check out the calendar area at the bottom of this page for weekly updates on Tony's condition. Acknowledgements to Friends of TonyThis special Power of One acknowledgement goes to more than just one person, it's for everyone who was involved in Tony's care and recovery while he was at St. Jude Medical Center.The Spirit of St. Jude We are grateful to everybody at St. Jude Medical Center who took such good care of Tony during his stay there. For six-months, everyone was committed to helping Tony through an undeniably difficult healing process. In particular, members of Tony's wound care team were in his words, "really good people." They worked diligently each day on Tony, helping him to fight off a number of infections that were close to killing him back in September. Similarly, the administrative crew led by Sue Potts was constantly advocating for Tony's cause. Sue seemed to spend more time on Tony than just about any other patient at St. Jude's. Both Sue Potts and Dr. Margaret Slaven were instrumental in getting Tony to recognize the positive progress he was making towards recovery. Among the nurses, there was Rosa, one of Tony's favorites. Rosa knew of his fondness for airplanes, so she helped to create an aviation theme in his hospital room. There were immeasurable other acts of kindness from the nurses that went undocumented, but not unappreciated. They say that there is a spirit at St. Jude's that is different from that at other hospitals. People there are genuinely committed to the mission set by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, and the quality and compassion of the care they provide definitely shows. They call this special feeling The Spirit of St. Jude. Six months is a long time to spend in the hospital. Thankfully, everyone at St. Jude's was up to the task of caring for Tony in a deeply committed way. The founding values that the Sisters began with - service, excellence, dignity and justice - were clearly practiced on a daily basis so that Tony could have a healthier tomorrow. What Were They Thinking?Just before Tony left St. Jude's, the staff prepared a special card for him (as seen in the picture below). By moving your mouse (via the pointer) over each of the names that appear in the box on the right, you can read the staff's comments and see what they were thinking. |
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Please note, if you see a message in the information bar of your browser that is warning or preventing the interactivity designed on this page from taking place, you can click on the message bar and allow the file to safely run the active content (which happens to be JavaScript). Tony's Prayer Circle
Jackie Rossetti from Fullerton Airport, a dedicated friend to Tony, informs us of the ongoing prayer efforts of the Crystal Cathedral. Tony has been on their prayer list for some time now, and Jackie says "many of the members know about the accident and Tony's recovery and are truly committed to keeping him in prayer." She further states, "I worked there for two years, and I know the hearts of the people there who are praying for him. They have a great compassion for Tony." Jackie's mother, Vera Ramaker, another member of Tony's Prayer Circle, reported that she e-mailed a recent prayer request for Tony and that it was printed out the following week for the members of her church at the Crystal Cathedral.
In fact, according to Jackie, Dr. Schuller, founder of the Crystal Cathedral, has been following Tony's story through the Updates. "Dr. Schuller has been so impressed with Tony's determination to overcome his limitations and get on with his life, despite the pain and struggles he continually faces," states Jackie, that "Dr. Schuller was inspired to encourage Tony with another letter." If you would like to be part of Tony's Prayer Circle, check out the prayer page for more details. Please Send PicturesA call is out for ANY pictures from both Tony's fundraiser/BBQ in 2004 and the UCI blood drive that followed. It's a shame that ALL of the pictures that were previously on Tony's earlier website are no longer available. We need your help to rebuild Tony's picture gallery. Send ANY pictures of these two events to: steve@friendsoftony.com. Thank you Connie Johnson for sending pictures from Barbara Steel's birthday party.More Friends of TonyA few more names have been added to the friends page and to the Friends-of-Tony Update email list. They are:
Previous Friends-of-Tony UpdatesYou can read previous FriendsOfTony Updates by clicking on the links below.
If you haven't already done so, add yourself to the Friends-of-Tony email list and friends page to find out more about Tony's condition and what you can do to help. Thank you, Steve Albanese FriendsOfTony.com Calendar |
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May 2006
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June 2006
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Week of May 7 It looks like everything is on schedule for Tony's May 17 homecoming. This Friday (May 12), a specialized team from Rancho will be coming to inspect the apartment to make sure that everything is in place to meet his needs. Tony will be coming to the apartment with them, his first visit home since last September. Tony has a new type of bed in the apartment now, it's important that he's rolled every couple of hours to prevent pressure points. The bed will automatically "roll" him. In addition, Tony has a live-in fulltime caregiver ready to start next week. Earlier this week, Tony made a special trip to Sears in his wheelchair and he had a chance to shop for new tools. His dad and an aide accompanied him from Rancho. We'll have pictures and further information available soon. May 17 Tony left Rancho Los Amigos and he's home now with a full time care giver. Week of May 21 Message from Tony "I wish to thank all the wonderful friends and strangers who prayed and supported me in my 20-month ordeal in the hospital. I am home now ..." (read more) Week of May 28 Stop by and visit Tony now that he's settled in at home. His parents had to leave California to take care of their own medical appointments, but they will be returning in about a week. They have asked for friends to come by, especially on the weekends to visit. |
Week of June 4 Tony's spirits have been lifted these past few days by the regular round of visitors coming by to see him. He has started a new photography project and plans to take pictures of everyone who has helped him. |
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