Posted by Maddie on November 12, 2001 at 16:06:45:
In Reply to: Re: Robert Johnson - medical update posted by Tena and David Lowe on November 12, 2001 at 16:05:48:
Dear Tena and David,
Thank you for your interest in Robert, do you know him? If not you might remember him as the BIG boy down at the dock who helps with luggage, who had a terrible limp. You have gathered from my posting on Briland.com what he has been going through. His updated is as follows; his "snoring" surgery is now December 2nd and he is walking without crutches AND he walked down 5 flights of stairs on Friday!
His main benefactor from Harbour Island are Jinty and Richard Chappell from Ottawa Canada. They have a house on the Remora Bay property and Robert's grandmother has been their maid for years, although I don't think she can work anymore. The Chappells organized this whole thing and between the Shriners and the Crippled Children Fund of the Bahamas, it has all been underwritten!
The doctors have Robert on a diet as he came into the hospital at 250 lbs. He is down to 230 but there is still room for improvement. The frown on sweets, but he loves them and I smuggled some candy bars in while I was in town. He loves getting out of the hospital, I would too after almost 4 months. Taking him out for a meal would be nice. I don't think he really needs anything at this point as I bought him some cloths when I was down and his storage space is limited.
He and his halo casts are cumbersome ... he fits in the back seat of my friend's Lexus SUV with his leg stretched out across the whole seat, as he can't bend it. He loves experiencing everything there is to experience; it is all new to him!
He is going home with his roommate for a few days over Thanksgiving and my friend's nephew comes to see him on weekends, but he does get pretty bored on the weekends. His week days are very full with school and therapy and they discourage weekday passes.
If you live in Dallas, you know where Scottish Rite is. He was is room 332, but you might check when you call or visit.
At this point he will be there until sometime in January. His Mom and the Chappell's are coming for Christmas and I will probably come back down in January depending on how long he stays.
Let me know if I can help you further and Thank You!
Maddie Dugan