Here's Lola's latest update...

The New Year has greeted Rico with progress and hope.

He is still in the hospital, but has finally been moved out of intensive
care and into a rehabilitation unit. He has been able to move the left
side of his body with more ease, and is learning to use this mobile side
to move the "paralyzed" right side of his body. Nurses are working with
him in rehab so he can feed himself, sit up on his own in a wheelchair,
and hopefully start to move the right side of his body more
independently.
He still has great difficulty in speaking, but seems to understand much
of what is going on.
Rico's family and doctors will be meeting soon to decide the next steps
in his treatment. They may be able to reduce the lesion on the left side
of his brain with some treatments. However, it may be in Rico's best
interests to just move home with a resident nurse or a physical
therapist instead.
Scrooge and I visited Rico's mom before Christmas to deliver the
donations, which amazingly are still coming in.
The family is extremely grateful for the outpouring of messages and
gifts from the messenger world. Our continuing support helps Rico and
his mother to be strong every day during these difficult times.
Rico's immune system is still extremely low, and it is still not
appropriate to have visitors yet. Please send messages to Rico's email
address so I can read them to him during my next visit. He loves to
hear from everyone!
Rico@dcbca.org

--Lola