A 14-year-old Amherstburg boy is fighting his way back from two-strokes that initially paralyzed him from the neck down and friends and family want to help.
Phoenix MacDonald-Gagnon woke up in the middle of the night unable to move back in September of 2017. His mother Betty-Joe immediately called 911 and he was rushed to Windsor Regional Hospital's Met Campus before being airlifted to London Children's Hospital.
It was there doctor's discovered Phoenix had suffered two strokes, one in his spinal cord, and another in the right side of his brain.
An undated photo of Phoenix Gagnon-MacDonald surrounded by friends and family in hospital. (Photo courtesy of www.facebook.com)
Phoenix was recently moved to a recovery centre in Toronto — he no longer needs a machine to breathe and is slowly regaining some movement.
Kari Dufour is Phoenix's aunt, she's one of several people organizing a fundraiser and gofundme-page to help make ends meet for the family.
She says Betty-Joe hasn't left his side since the ordeal began and his brother Raven has been trying to keep things going for her at home.
"She's had to quit her job since all of this happened, to be able to help care for him," she says. "She also has a 20-year-old son that's back in Kingsville, he's trying to keep the house together for her while she's gone."
There's no guarantees Phoenix will fully recover, and he'll likely need braces if he ever walks again — but Dufour says Phoenix has been unbelievably optimistic.
"They haven't really said if he's ever going to walk again, which he's come to terms with," says Dufour. "He's able to use his laptop to communicate with his friends, so he's still got some connection back here to Amherstburg."
She says he's been fitted for an electric wheelchair, and some funding has come through for an accessible van, but there's more that will have to be paid for before they return home in June.
"The one major thing that they're going to need when he finally gets released from Toronto is an accessible house," she says. "They were living in a pretty small apartment in Kingsville so we're hoping that we can raise some money to be able to help with that."
A pasta dinner will be held for Phoenix, Betty-Joe, and Raven at McGregor's K of C Hall on Walker Rd. near Stewart St. on Sunday March 4 from 4pm to 7pm — tickets are $20.