Thoughts for member - John Wart Jr.

[tonyt]

Just read on RGP that one of our valued overseas member's wife and two children (both under 3) have been involved in a cycling accident with a car.

Wishing them a speedy recovery John, my thoughts are with you and your family.

Tony

[Steevsee]

Best wishes to John and his family.

 

[pinnies4me]

Thanks for mentioning this Tony. John is a terrific fellow, and I recall a while back how much he helped a family where one of his friends passed away suddenly (very young).

Bryan Kelly on RGP who is a well known collector and restorer (I actually bought my BBB by buying Bryan's spot in the queue) has set up a fund, I encourage anyone who is keen to help to contribute.

I'm sure most here have heard of the accident involving John's wife
and two kids.  Having a wife and two kids myself, my heart goes out to
John and his family.  I can't begin to imagine what they must be going
through.

For those who know John, well, you know John.  And for those who have
never met or dealt with John, he's about the nicest, kindest, most
helpful, generous person you would ever want to meet.

I'm not sure of John's insurance situation but I'm sure there will be
plenty of bills that need to be paid.  I'd like to start a fund to
help John and his family.  John could use this money to help with the
bills or to do something special for his family.

I'll start it off with $50.  You can Paypal me at bskelly3 at aol dot
com and please mark it with a reference to John.  Also, please send it
as a gift to avoid fees.  If there are any fees involved, I'd be more
than happy to cover them.

For those who don't have a Paypal account, you can send me a check,
made out to Bryan Kelly, addressed to 18890 Elgin Ave Farmington MN
55024.

I'll let this go for 30 days or so then send John a check.  I'd like
to include a list of those who donated so please make sure your name
is included with the Paypal gift or check.

No amount too small and no amount too large.

Let's show John how much RGP cares.

Bryan (CARGPB 14)
http://usergallery.myhomegameroom.com/gallery/bspins

[Homepin]

Thanks for posting the full message - donated.

[Strangeways]

John is one of the most respected pinball personalities and I'm saddend by the accident.

I will organsie a donation on behalf of AP to assist with expenses.

My thoughts and prayers are with John and his family.

[ktm450]

Very sad news, I have delt with John a bit over the years, he is a top bloke 
I wish his family all the best through this hard time

[Belac]

I just talked with John on the phone to let him know what RGP has done
for him.  Needless to say, he was very appreciative and wanted me to
thank everyone.

Without getting into details, it sounds like Stacey, Vinnie and Emily
are doing OK.  Other than possible emotional issues, the doctors feel
they will all eventually mend.  The two kids will be wearing braces
for a few weeks, but because of their age (4 and 3) the doctors think
they will be fine.  In fact, as I was talking to John, Vinnie decided
to check out the buttons on his bed.  All I heard John say was, "no,
Vinnie.  That one brings the nurse.  We don't need the nurse right
now.  :-)

As John said, thank God everyone is alive.  It may have helped, the
accident happened across the street from a fire station with
paramedics on duty.  As I told John, sh*t happens, but someone seemed
to be watching out for the Wart family that day.

PS  As of this morning, the check going to John and Stacey will be in
the neighborhood of $12,000.  You guys on RGP are the BEST!!!

This is great news that they are all on the road to recovery, and the amount raised is amazing, a true representation of how well John is respected in the hobby.

[pinnies4me]

Terrific stuff

[Strangeways]

Quote from RGP

"To Bryan and everyone:

Thanks so much for the
thoughts/prayers/calls/texts/e-mails/donations/etc. My family and I
really appreciate this. It's been a very tough week for my family and it
looks like it's going to be that way for awhile.

But, we are all alive, which is the important thing.

Something like this really puts things in perspective. I may not be
rich, but I clearly have the best kids, family and friends in the world.
Can't get much wealthier than that in my eyes!

Hopefully, I'll have the time on my hands to return to posting a bit
more soon; as you can imagine, I'm kinda tied up with a few things that
take precedence at the moment.

An update on everyone's status, youngest to oldest:

Vinnie, my son, is 3. He has stretched ligaments in his neck, a
contusion to his lung, and a lot of road rash. The ligaments are being
treated with a neck brace for at least 6 weeks, the lung is supposed to
heal itself, given time. He keeps asking to go downstairs and play
pinball, but honestly I'm a little paranoid about how 'fragile' he is,
and I worry about carrying him down the stairs. The doctors don't want
me to have him climbing stairs of that magnitude yet.

Emily, my daughter, is 4. She has 2 fractured vertebrae, a contusion to
her lung, a contusion to her liver, and bleeding on her brain. She has
just a bit of road rash. She is in a waist to neck brace for at least 6
weeks, the lung and liver will heal themselves, and the bleeding has
stopped, apparently her body will 're-absorb' the clot over time. I
wasn't aware of this, but apparently your head has its own blood
filtering mechanism, and there's no danger of this blood clot 'breaking
loose' and going anywhere. She doesn't feel like doing much of anything
right now, as you might imagine.

Stacy, my wife, is 29. She is having some issues with dizziness, and is
pretty scraped up. The doctors are hoping the dizziness is related to
the meds they have her on, and we've changed meds to see if it goes
away. If it doesn't, it's back for another MRI. Stacy's frustrated
because she really can't do much of anything due to her injuries, no
driving, no working, can't lift the kids, etc.

I'm 31, and have no physical injuries as the car swerved around me.. but
this is taking a toll on me.

But we will all recover, and we are all alive! "

I've sent a $50 Donation from AP to assist with the family's recovery. Great to hear they are recovering well.