With those thanks, however, she has added a request. Since Tuesday morning, Michael has required blood transfusions repeatedly - and blood banks across the country are challenged to respond to the demands placed upon them. Please, if you are eligible, take an hour and donate blood. If you don't know whether or not you are eligible, find out - the basic eligibility criteria can be found here. For the donor, it only takes the equivalent of your lunch hour... but for the recipient, it can (and often does) mean life or death.


How is Michael doing? He weathered the surgery to stabilize his chest wall today well, but it has been a tough day on him nonetheless. The MRI confirmed what the neurosurgeon suspected - he has many fractured vertebrae (spine bones) in all sections of his spine. Fortunately, his spinal cord is intact, and looks reasonably good. He will definitely need to remain in the cervical collar for the forseeable future, but right now there is no immediate need for surgery to stabilize the fractures. Depending on what his body can do on its own, and on how stable the fractures look once some primary healing has taken place, he may have to go into surgery - for now, however, the surgeon would rather leave him alone.


He still has 2 chest tubes, but his left lung (the one that was punctured) is reinflated. The brain bleed has not worsened, and Michael's sedation was eased up a little this morning to see how his neurological status was. He was able to follow simple commands and did open his eyes - this is an encouraging sign, indeed. He was sedated again after they assessed him - at this point it is important that all of his body's resources are dedicated to healing, and the best way to make sure of that is to allow the ventilator to breathe for him, and to keep him sedated.


It is important to remember that this is going to be a very long journey for Michael, Heather, Chance, Madison and Abigail. As in any serious situation, there might be setbacks, but Michael's strength, refusal to give up and the incredible family and friends who surround him have brought him to the other side of tough struggles before.


With our prayers and positive thoughts, he can do it again.


Please continue to pray, offer your thoughts, and share this page....


... and give blood - please.