Little Girl’s Determination Helps Her Graduate from Feeding Therapy
Since the day she was born, it was quite clear that Erin Hughes knows what she wants. This determination helped her become the healthy little girl she is today. In January 2011, Erin and her twin brother, Will, were born 3 months early, each weighing just over a pound. The twins spent a combined 279 days […]
Baby Roman wears helmet to correct flat spot on his head
Early on Eric and Debbie Boersma had concerns about the back of their son, Roman’s, head. “We thought it looked a little flat, but given we see him every day it was difficult for us to really know if it was flat or if it was normal,” said Eric. During Roman’s four month check-up they […]
Maria Besta: Passionate about the abilities of people with disabilities
This week we’re shining the spotlight on Mary Free Bed’s Wheelchair & Adaptive Sports Program manager, Maria Besta. Maria was recognized as a YWCA Tribute Award winner for her extraordinary efforts to strengthen our community. For those of you who have the privilege of knowing Maria, or working with Maria, you understand how truly deserved this honor is. Below […]
A Walking Miracle – And Inspiration For All
At first, the morning of April 10, 2012 appeared to be much like any other for Tammy Gould. Her 10-year-old son, Benjamin, had school in less than an hour, and she had to ensure he was ready for the day. After packing his lunch and preparing breakfast, she walked upstairs to wake him up. But, […]
Horseback riding accident leaves competitor with spinal cord injury
Dr. Alice Gale has always been active. Last year, if she wasn’t at her dermatology practice, she was outside running, riding her bike or maybe at the gym. For as long as she can remember, she’s ridden horses, and for the past 20 years, she’s jumped horses competitively. Last February, Alice was in Florida for […]
Feels like home: Ohio family chooses Mary Free Bed for pediatric rehab
On February 5, Donnie and Jill Acuff’s 5-year-old son, Reese, was in a snowmobiling accident that resulted in a brain injury. After 5 brutal days, Donnie and Jill were told that Reese would live, but he was sedated to protect his brain. The doctors stressed how critical rehabilitation would be in Reese’s recovery, but Reese […]
Told he’d never walk again, Bob is back on his feet
For the second time that winter, Bob Dykstra and his friends jumped on their snowmobiles and shot into the woods. Always a fan of snow sports, Bob was eager to tear up the powder. They approached a hill that they’d gone over hundreds of times before. Bob flew over the pinnacle and instead of landing […]
Former Mary Free Bed Patient Returns as Volunteer
What occurred the night of Christmas 1990 was the last thing Al Bober anticipated. Instead of relaxing at his father’s Chicago home with his family, Al collapsed by a gas pump with a leaking brain aneurysm and immense head pain. “It was like somebody hit me with a sledgehammer,” Al said. He laid in the […]
Couple Stays Positive Through Life-Changing Events
It has been a rough journey for Hernan and Susan Murillo since moving to Grand Rapids in fall 2010. But their bright smiles and positive attitude would make you think otherwise. Shorty after their arrival to Michigan, Susan suffered a transient ischemic attack (TIA), also known as a mini-stroke. She was paralyzed for two weeks […]
Man walks again after sustaining spinal cord damage from aortic aneurysm
Many of us have heard these kinds of motivational statements before. But when you experience a life changing event, these words take on a whole new meaning. Randy Ribble, 64, was enjoying an ordinary evening in May when it took an unfortunate turn. “I was settling in for the night, and of all of sudden […]
Woman finds ways to manage lymphedema
Hope is what motivated Toy McNeal to find ways to manage her lymphedema – an abnormal accumulation of lymphatic fluid (a clear fluid that travels through the lymphatic system and carries cells that help fight infections and other diseases) in a body part that causes swelling. Typically, arms or legs are affected. After having a […]
Former Mary Free Bed patients to compete in Fifth Third River Bank Run
On Saturday, May 12, 2012, thousands will come together to make history in the Fifth Third River Bank Run in downtown Grand Rapids. This year’s event celebrates the River Bank Run’s 35th race, and will involve more than 21,000 athletes – including those who compete from wheelchairs and handcycles – in the largest 25k race […]
Dreams, triumphs and rugby: Colin Sullivan lives life to the fullest
For Colin Sullivan, a life-long resident of West Michigan, December 19, 1999, will always be remembered as the day in which his life changed forever. Early that morning, around 5 am, Colin drove from East Lansing to his home in Grand Rapids, an 80-mile journey he had taken countless times in the past as a […]
Restoring hope, sharing beauty
Often the road to hope and recovery is a maze with twists and turns that move forward then backward. Vern Criner has been navigating his maze for 4 years. Vern has suffered setbacks, surgeries and despair. But, his times at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital have provided steps forward toward hope. Vern was a florist […]
After gunshot wound, Erica uses strength and determination to return to independence
“16 years ago today, my life changed forever…it was a miracle that the bullet didn’t hit any major arteries…I have my down times bc being a C5 quadriplegic isn’t easy but 3 things get me through everyday, my faith, my friends, n my family.” – Erica Byers Pelton’s Facebook page, March 1 Erica Byers Pelton […]
Resilient Teenager Overcomes Challenges of Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis
At first glance, Kelsey Winslow is just like any other 18-year-old high school student. She loves to meet new people, hang out with friends and spend time with relatives. More often than not, Kelsey has her phone in hand, texting with friends. Kelsey also can’t wait to attend her upcoming senior prom. In fact, dancing is […]
Baclofen Pump and Therapists Help Taylor Make a Comeback After Brain Hemorrhage
It’s been 11 years since 19-year-old Taylor Cunningham suffered an AVM rupture, which caused a hemorrhage in her brain and left Taylor unable to walk. Just a young girl at the time, Taylor had to undergo several surgeries. Yet it was the severe spasticity that caused Taylor the most pain, a constant presence in her […]
Life no longer on hold for mom and daughter after receiving rehabilitation treatment for chronic headaches
Headaches and migraines run in Erin’s family, so it was no surprise when her daughter began to complain of headaches. When Rachel started missing school and had used up Erin’s bag of tricks for relief, it was time to get Rachel some expert help. Rachel was referred to The Pain Center at Mary Free Bed […]
Retired Nurse Recovers from Devastating Car Accident
As a retired hospice and medical ICU nurse, as well as a past manager of a neurological outpatient center, Debbie Zima, a native of Chicago, helped countless patients overcome a range of illnesses, injuries, and other health-related setbacks throughout her 30-year-long career. But, she likely never imagined that she would one day become a patient […]
Spinal Cord Injury Patient Gets Back on the Road
After suffering a spinal cord injury from a snowmobile accident, Dan Bolhouse closed the door to negativity. Dan had been snowmobiling since he was a child. While on a trip with his buddies in 1999, he took an unexpected sharp turn too fast and crashed straight into a tree. He devastatingly injured the T7 vertebrae […]
Mom Suffers Multiple Traumas and Spinal Cord Injury, Returns to The Things She Loves
by Coertney Vanderhill My sisters and I walked into the hospital room just after 4 am. My mom lay still and flat with tubes coming out of her chest, draining blood from her lungs into bags that were hung around her hospital bed. Despite all the serious injuries my mom sustained, I most vividly remember […]
Athlete returns to competition after spinal cord injury
by Beth Redford After a few days, I have recovered from playing in the recent Grand Rapids Wheelchair Sports Association (GRWSA) Tennis Fundraising Tournament at Ramblewood in Grand Rapids. The weekend started with picking up 3 cases of tennis balls for tournament director and wheelchair tennis head coach, Lynn Bender, and delivering them to Ramblewood. After […]
Motorcycle Accident Victim Full of Hope and Optimism throughout Recovery
Matthew Sexton was riding his motorcycle on his way to work early one morning. He was cruising down a two-lane road when he noticed an SUV heading straight toward him. As he veered to the shoulder to avoid an accident, the SUV swerved in the same direction and hit Matthew head on. Matthew flew through […]
Gravely injured in auto accident, patient depends on husband to choose rehabilitation facility
It was the click she didn’t hear that turned Tammy Helton’s life upside down. Last July 9, Tammy hopped into her Jeep to head to the home in Twin Lakes that she shared with her husband, Mike, and the youngest of their 3 children. The music was cranked, and Tammy doesn’t remember hearing the click of […]
Baclofen pump helps two boys with severe spasticity
Thirteen-year-old Kordell Rodrigues has cerebral palsy. Seven years ago, he suffered from such severe spasticity that his body was like a stiff board, according to his grandmother, Debra Rodrigues. Doctors recommended that Kordell have a baclofen pump surgically implanted into his abdomen to alleviate his spasticity. Debra said the decision to get the baclofen pump […]
Overcoming barriers: Patient with MS faces challenges and thrives
As a full-time social worker, Nicky Lewis has always placed the interests of others well before her own, grateful for the opportunity to regularly improve her patients’ lives. Ironically, when diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) this past April, she suddenly became a patient herself. (MS is an autoimmune disease in which the myelin sheaths that […]
5-year-old overcomes eating struggles
by Molly Cartwright Like many kids, Cerelle is a bit of a picky eater. She loves to eat cake and ice cream, but won’t eat salty foods, such as French fries. For Lynn and Pat Pohl, Cerelle’s parents, the fact she wants to eat at all is something to celebrate. For the past 4 years […]
Sustained by his faith, avid hunter recovers from tree stand fall
by Chris Lewis As a Michigan native, Geoff Newmyer, along with a majority of his friends and family members, has been actively hunting since he was a child. “My dad and uncles were avid hunters,” Geoff said. “As I grew up, I always looked forward to hunting with my dad.” Geoff has been hunting on […]
Rebuilding from the ground up
by Amanda Larsen A small businessman in Kalamazoo for 34 years, Jeff Block, ended a long day of work on a rainy July evening with the routine job of emptying his truck bed of the day’s debris. Jeff heaved the trash into the dumpster and slipped. He lost his footing and fell off the truck. […]
Passion, Optimism, Recovery: Hunter Shares Story of Tree Stand Fall
by Chris Lewis For as long as he can remember, Gale Lynch has been passionate about the outdoors – and hunting. At the age of 8 he began to accompany his father during fall and winter deer hunts, as the two regularly searched for trophy bucks. He soon found himself shooting at tin cans with a […]