It was December 2019 and Andy Wallach was in a Florida hospital after suffering traumatic injuries during an accident in an All-Terrain Vehicle.
医生告诉他的妻子, 辛西娅Faschini, that he would never walk again and that he had no better than a 50 percent chance of living a year.
差不多五年后, 安迪仍然精力充沛, as was clearly apparent on Saturday morning when bet8体育娱乐入口 dedicated a portion of the 埃尔默健康科学学院 building as the Faschini Wallach Center for Restorative Therapies.
Andy walked – with the aid of a walker – with Faschini by his side as they stepped to the podium to dedicate the multispecialty rehabilitation center formerly known as ODU Monarch Physical Therapy.
健康科学学院院长, 邦妮·范鲁南, was joined by a host of family members and friends of Andy and Cynthia for the grand opening.
The center was named for the Norfolk couple after they established a $2 million endowment for the Faschini Wallach Center for Restorative Therapies. Funds from the endowment will be used to supplement the services that patients now receive.
这是他们感谢ODU的君主物理治疗的方式, 强烈的治疗和精神上的支持, 这让他们在那次可怕的事故后重新振作起来.
他们是一对非常亲密的夫妇，喜欢旅行和彼此在一起. 他们喜欢在度假时进行具有挑战性的体育活动. 他们去过世界各地，经济上很宽裕.
“和安迪在一起的生活就像一场梦，”法希尼谈到事故发生前的生活时说.
但安迪死后，他们的世界崩塌了, 他们所骑的全地形车的方向盘是谁, 了anunmarked, 危险的弯道有点太快了. 两人都被扔下了车.
辛西娅摔断了一条腿，失去了知觉. 这是好消息. 坏消息是安迪快死了.
他的腿有很多复合骨折，几乎和身体断了, 他血流如注. Had it not been for a group of medical personnel on an ATV that pulled up minutes after their crash, 他可能已经死了.
他们用止血带止住了血.
He tore the rotator cuff in his right arm and had a broken finger and cuts and contusions all over. Later, they learned he had suffered a spinal cord injury and was paralyzed from the chest down.
医生在决定可以挽救他的左腿之前，曾短暂地考虑过截肢.
他没有受伤, 但安迪的康复过程漫长而痛苦，一开始, 他几乎束手无策.
让他为这一天做准备花了两到三个小时. 他不会自己穿衣服, 不能走路，每天早上都要用电梯把他从床上抬起来.
Cynthia was searching for a physical therapy center to help get her husband back on his feet during the midst of the pandemic. 没有多少中心愿意接受他.
但后来一个小中心的治疗师建议她检查一下ODU.
“他们是最好的，”她被告知.
辛西娅打电话给丽莎·科普娜, ODU理疗诊所主任, 是谁与他们见面，用她的第一个问题让他们震惊.
“你的目标是什么??她问安迪.
“我想再走路，”他说. “我想要独立.”
“我们忙起来吧，”她说.
两年了, ODU’s occupational and physical therapists worked with Andy three or four times a week. 当时他已经76岁了，但他的干劲却只有年龄只有他一半的人.
他每天早上在家锻炼, 做举重和运动, 然后去了当时的ODU君主物理治疗诊所. 物理治疗师, 许多人与ODU学生并肩工作, would stretch Andy’s legs and arms and put him through a difficult regiment of exercise.
Occupational therapists would work to strengthen his grip and ability to do simple tasks, 比如拿起叉子.
Several days a week he would leave the clinic and head to ODU’s Student 娱乐 Center, 在那里他会尽全力举重.
渐渐地，他开始好转了. 他的腿又能动了. 然后他们变得更强壮，他可以举起他们. 然后他开始借助助行器走路. Now, he can get undressed and go to bed by himself as well as get himself ready each morning.
他不像新的了. “但我又有了美好的生活，”他说.
尽管他现在已经78岁了，但他仍在不断进步.
“治疗师为安迪在ODU所做的是一个奇迹，”辛西娅说.
它是9a。.m. 在星期三的早晨 也就是说安迪和辛西娅在这栋楼里. 当他们进入时, Andy wheels himself into the PT treatment area while Cynthia makes the rounds with all the patients, 员工和任何路过的人.
“她认识所有人，”脊髓受伤的约翰·佩里(John Perry)说. “她试图让人们振作起来，让每个人都感到积极.
安迪也是. 他们试图帮助每个人.”
“他们都是圣人，”丽莎·科普娜补充道. “如果有人有问题，她会试图解决它. 她对这里的每个人都很关心，很外向. 每个人都喜欢她.”
他们也爱安迪. 他的热情很有感染力，他的幽默感让治疗师们笑个不停. 虽然他表面上是个硬汉，但内心却很温柔. 当他看到有人在治疗中挣扎时, 或者过了糟糕的一天, 他会伸出手来给予鼓励.
这一天，他和理疗师梅根·弗里克一起工作, 她也是参加过弗吉尼亚小姐选美的选美皇后. Her talent in the contest was singing and Andy is trying to get her to sing while she tries to redirect his attention to the therapy.
“他叫我音乐狂还是疯子，这取决于他的心情，”梅根说. “他让我笑个不停. “和他一起工作很好. 他工作很努力.”
说完，他站起来，开始做抬腿动作. 他的脸上露出痛苦的表情. Rehabilitation can be like that – it strengthens your body but requires intestinal fortitude.
The setting in which he is working out is far different from the place where his therapy began. ODU’s Physical and occupational therapy departments were previously housed in a warehouse just off Killam Avenue.
这座建筑很旧，设施也很简陋, but ODU built a thriving practice that not only worked to heal many in the community, 同时也给学生提供了与病人打交道的实践经验.
什么是一件非常好的事情得到了显著的改善 当ODU搬进新的埃尔默健康科学学院大楼时. 与教室, 实验室及研究设施, 这座三层楼的建筑是两个人的家,000名学生参加了健康科学课程, 以及近200名教职员工.
它是以丹尼斯和简·埃尔默的名字命名的, 弗吉尼亚海滩的一对夫妇慷慨解囊, 向ODU捐赠2000万美元. Dennis Ellmer, who founded Priority Automotive, also serves on ODU’s Board of 访问ors.
它也是索菲亚和大卫·科尼科夫牙科卫生保健机构的所在地.
Faschini Wallach中心有很棒的设施. There is a fully furnished apartment where patients can practice getting in and out of bed, 使用洗手间, 做饭和洗衣服. Hampton Roads Transit donated a bus that allow patients to practice getting on and off a bus.
还有一辆汽车, 贵族拖曳公司捐赠的, 帮助病人学会上车和下车.
一个下午, 当安迪穿过一楼时, 欣赏着中庭的天花板，看着学生们匆匆赶往教室, 他停下来笑了笑.
“The people here did so much good, they helped so many people, in the old facility,” he said. “想象一下他们将为这里的人们做些什么.”
辛西娅和安迪 在他们位于殖民地广场的家中招待客人, 包括玛尼莎·夏尔马, 一位协助促成他们捐款的巨额捐献干事.
吃饭时, they also answer questions about why they donated $2 million of their hard-earned money to ODU.
“我们意识到我们是多么幸运，”安迪说.
They had the money to pay for the best care and Andy has a dedicated wife and family who offer him tons of support.
“不是每个人都能得到这样的支持，”辛西娅说. “Often, after someone suffers a major injury, the spouse just can’t handle it and leaves. 这并不意味着他们是坏人. 这意味着他们无法承受.”
这也是他们捐赠200万美元的部分原因, 帮助那些在家里没有太多精神支持的病人.
The $2 million will never be touched and theoretically will help patients many decades into the future.
“We did this is because of the progress Andy made from his initial diagnosis to where he was two years ago,法希尼谈到他们在2022年承诺的捐款时说. “那里发生的事情超出了我最疯狂的梦想.
“它对我们产生了如此大的影响，我们想要回报. Not just give back to the others around us but to the community and to the commonwealth.”
Koperna said ODU hasn’t yet determined how the money Andy and Cynthia donated will be spent.
“但他们慷慨的礼物会被明智地使用，”她说. “所有这些都将用于为其他人提供更多的支持和资源. 我们已经向他们保证过我们会这么做.
“What we hope happens is that this money will provide the kind of extra help that we had,辛西娅补充道. “我们希望这能帮助患者超越物理和职业治疗.”
这笔钱可以用来购买新设备，或者为病人提供情感支持. “物理和职业治疗非常棒, 但如果你想要进步，你必须做得更多,安迪说. “我们希望这份礼物能让病人做得更多.”
安迪说ODU的治疗师做的远不止打卡这么简单.
“他们会坐在垫子上和你一起工作，”他说. “他们的奉献精神令人惊叹.
“他们激励着你。. 他们让你振作起来. 除非你能激励病人，否则你无法让任何人工作. 他们每天都在激励着我.”
他们最欣赏的人是Lisa Koperna.
“没有丽莎，我们都不会在这里，”辛西娅说. “她(领导的团队)在ODU开始了物理治疗服务. 这是她的作品.”
安迪和辛西娅过着接近正常的生活. 他们一起旅行. 辛西娅出去打高尔夫球时，安迪可以照顾好自己. At night, they are able to do something many couples can’t do after one suffers a serious injury.
“我们每晚都拥抱. 我们每晚都接吻，”辛西娅说. “There is a direct correlation between kissing your spouse at night and going to sleep. 我们很幸运，我们可以. “不是每个人都能在像安迪这样的伤病之后做到这一点.”
“我们太幸运了，”安迪补充道. “我们希望与他人分享一些财富.
“这次经历是一次挑战，尤其是对辛西娅来说. 她已经并将继续为我做这么多. 但我们比以往任何时候都要亲密. 我肯定有些人会同情我.
“但在很多方面，我认为自己是一个非常幸运的人. 我们的爱，我们的关系，经历了这一切，变得更加牢固.”
Koperna曾近距离观察过这种情况.
“他们的故事太鼓舞人心了，”她说. “It is truly a testament to the power of hope, generosity, love, medicine and miracles.”