02/13/05
  Last weekend we were told by UMC that the Phoenix Memorial Children's Hospital had a bed for Joey & the helicopter flight was being arranged to fly him down there on Tuesday or Wednesday 2/8-9. The local Fox channel KVVU had an interview planned for Tuesday 8 am, live on the morning news show to advise the public about Joey's injury and advertise the Feb 9th silent auction to be held at the Cavalier Restaurant. The interview went very well and hundreds of thousands of So. NV viewers saw it. Fox 5 arranged a link to Joey's website on theirown website. The next day, the hospital sent a team of physical & speech therapists in to work on Joey and decided to start feeding him pureed foods. The idea was to determine if Joey could hold down enough food to supply him with the required caloric intake and enough fluids to avoid dehydration. If he showed he was able to eat & drink enough, they would consider foregoing the surgery to run a feeding tube directly into his belly. The physical/speech therapists began working on his tongue and lips to help him learn how to form sounds. They also got him to stand up in bed with back & neck support to determine if he was able to balance his weight on his legs. They had him in a standing position for about 8 minutes and determined that he should be able to walk someday. They also worked on his right arm & fashioned another brace to keep him from tucking the hand under his chin. For 5 days Joey has shown that he can eat & drink enough. He even grabbed a sippy cup full of juice with his left hand and put it into his mouth. He did the same with a tootsie roll pop. It seems the hospital is satisfied enough that they have decided not to perform the surgery. They also fashioned a helmet to protect his head. They encouraged us to put him in a wheelchair and wheel him around to get him accostomed to sitting in an effort to strengthen his neck and back muscles. This gradual exercise would give him enough strength to try standing again sometime in the next week or so. On Wednesday, the silent auction was held at the Cavalier and the Fox 5 newscrew was there to film the event and interview Joey's dad. Some of the donated items auctioned included a brand new multi-game slot poker machine, expensive wines/liqours, casino show tickets, sporting event tickets, auto repair coupons, clothing, etc. The auction was not well-attended, but ultimately very successful. The auction netted more than $2,400 and the restaurant owner announced he would match the amount. After all items/raffle tickets were totalled, the amount raised was over $6,000. Donors added another $550 in the following 3 days after the event was televised, mostly from people who remarked they had little ones at home and empathised with the horror of Joey's injury. Since Wednesday, there has been no mention from the hospital about Joey's transfer to Phoenix. Part of the problem is the issue with Medicaid. In order to qualify for Medicaid, the family needs to be broke. We would need to dissolve all our assets to qualify. That will likely happen soon anyway due to the tremendous medical costs that have climbed daily. Joey's hospital/medical bills are already over $450,000. Rehab may cost an additional $750,000-$1,000,000. The government is adamant about cutting Medicaid funding.

Joey has shown he definately is a candidate for Rehab, as he has displayed the ability to understand simple commands (squeeze my hand, turn your head, open your mouth, raise your legs, etc.). Doctors are amazed by his advancements over the past 2 weeks. When asked how old he was, Joey immediately showed 5 fingers. He has learned to "blow kisses" and wave bye-bye. He still doesn't make sounds other than a giggle or cry. He had a CatScan on Sat night to determine the extent of swelling and fluid buildup on his brain. The results won't be known till late Monday. He has had some good days and some bad days, but continues to progress slowly. He has had no infections or fevers the past week. The Cavalier Restaurant is planning additional fundraising events...a barbeque, bowling tourney & maybe a golf outing. Fundraising is also taking place in Michigan with a bottle drive & radio messages. Updated hospital photos should be ready for viewing on the website by Monday or Tuesday. If Joey could talk or understand what is going on, he would thank & blow kisses to everyone who has offered their prayers & support. Everyone who has ever met or known Joey wants to see him run around like a waterbug again. He had tremendous energy and drive and a loving personality. It is that energy & drive that helped him survive this horrible injury and the prayers & support are helping him get his functions back slowly. He certainly has defied the odds for survival & we all look forward to his continued improvement in Rehab, whenever that happens. His smiles and giggles are enough to melt anyone's heart, especially after knowing what this little boy has endured the past 4 weeks. We thank everyone for the prayers & support. He gets lots of visitors & kisses & tickles.