Update from David • Radioactive Eggs!

For about 6 months I have been in hibernation mode – other than staying warm and trying not to think about skiing, my mom and I have been going to Massachusetts General Hospital to get my stomach problems figured out. I’ve gotta say they have been doing a great job. Since I have a high level injury my insides don’t move too well and this makes me feel extremely full even when I have not eaten in a while. So, I constantly have stomach pain but now I’m on a new med that will help my insides work better. Yesterday I finished the last test that they needed which involved eating radioactive eggs and taking pictures of my stomach every two hours.👌🏻

Congrats to my mom for not falling asleep while driving since we got up at 3am for this and got home at 7pm!

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Bowling Fundraiser for David on November 15th

$20 per adult, $10 per child
Free Shoe Rental
Silent Auction
Live DJ and Karaoke

Bowl to help David get out of his house and into the woods! David loves the outdoors, but since the accident four years ago that left him a quadriplegic he hasn’t been able to enjoy what he lives for; snow, fresh air, excitement and adventure! A Trackchair will allow him to get out into the woods, to tackle rough terrain, and to get to the top of the ski area. This would mean the world to him!

Yankee Lanes Bowling Center in Keene – 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on November 15th

If you can’t make it on the 15th, you can still help by making a donation to his Trackchair gofundme campaign – https://www.gofundme.com/me556338

3rd Annual HelpHOPELive For David 5K Set For September 12th

We are excited to announce that the 3rd Annual HelpHOPELive for David Hudgik 5K Fun Run & Walk will take place on Saturday, September 12, 2015.

This year’s 5K event promises to be the best yet!

Stay updated
Complete event details are at HHL5K.org
Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/hhl5K
Follow us on Twitter @HHL5K

 

Save the Date. Don’t Miss This Year’s Fun Run August 30th!

 

August 30th, SAVE THE DATE! You can start promoting this year’s Fun Run right now. We need everyone’s help! All the tools you need (printable flyers, pledge sheets, Share buttons) are available at the Fun Run web page.

And it’s not too early to start asking your friends, family, neighbors and co-workers to sponsor you. The individual who raises the most funds will be presented with a trophy! You can download your pledge sheet today at the Fun Run web page.

David wants (and needs) to learn to drive, but he can’t just hop in a car and go. Let’s do our best to raise the funds needed for a van conversion. Visit the Fun Run web page right now and use the buttons there to share with your friends. Register online right now and you’ll be guarunteed a free tee shirt!

SEE YOU THERE!

Thank You Fuller Elementary School!

Early Friday morning David attended a school assembly at The Fuller Elementary School here in Keene where the student council presented him with a check for $724. With other donations from the staff the total for the day came to $800.

WOW! Thank you Fuller School!

The student council took David on as a fund raising cause for the year. With the help of the staff, students and parents they raised a record amount of funds for David.

As a family we know Fuller School very well. David, his brother Jason and his sister Emily all graduated from Fuller School.

Fuller is not just about learning how to read & write. It is not just about science, art, music and languages. Fuller is much more than that. Fuller is also about respect, responsibility, compassion, caring and kindness. Fuller is about family and being part of a larger family, the community.

It all adds up to one four letter word which I don’t think gets used enough in this world, LOVE.

On behalf of David and the rest of my family I would like to thank our Fuller School family for their kindness and most importantly love.

At the end of the presentation the staff and students sang the following song to David:

YOU’RE A HERO!

Verse

You press through every hardship.
With strength and courage strive
To meet each challenge that you face
You keep our dreams alive
You’re always there to help us
And try to be a friend.

Chorus

You’re a hero, a hero
An example to the world
For everyone to see.
You’re a hero, a hero!
You’re the type of person I would like to be.

and it goes on from there…

It was a very emotional presentation.
The presentation touched us deeply.
The picture above is of the Fuller School Student Council. They spoke on behalf of the school and presented David with a big check.

You can see more pictures at David’s website. Click here.

Thank you FULLER!
David’s Dad Paul

Prom Night in Keene!

Prom night was a bigger event than I ever imagined.

A few weeks back David asked his friend Mikayla to the prom in a very surprising and special way. During morning announcements at Keene High David got on the morning video broadcast and asked Mikayla to the prom. It was seen in all of the class rooms before classes started. I think she said yes.

The evening of the prom Mikayla’s family and ours all went out to dinner at the Olive Garden. While we were in the Olive Garden, unknown to everyone, Mikayla’s brother and fiancee where out in the parking lot decorating David’s van for the occasion. A little later on David’s brother Jason did up the inside of the van with mini lights on the roof so it looked like the inside of a limo.

After that it seems that everyone that is going to the prom goes to Ashuelot Park to take pictures. It is kind of like a reception before the main event. Lots and lots of kids and their families were there.

Mikayla looked like a princes. David’s four year old niece thought she really was.

David looked very dapper, a man of intrigue.

They both had a great time!

Click here to see David’s Prom photos.

Sorry for not posting more often in the last few weeks. Things have been really busy. I will be posting more often in the near future.

Thank you for your support. It is making a difference. David is moving forward.

David’s Dad Paul

Join Us on August 31st for a 5K Fun Run to Benefit David Hudgik

Help support David!
On August 31st friends and supporters of David Hudgik will be holding a 5K Fun Run to raise funds to purchase upper body exercise (Upper-Tone) equipment for David.

Join us. Bring your friends. Spread the word.
Click here for info.

This is very important equipment for David because upper body training is critical for developing the muscles that David uses in everyday life. Regular physical exercise will help to improve David’s muscle strength and endurance, making everyday tasks such as pushing his wheelchair and transferring much easier. Exercising his upper body will be a great way for David to get a cardiovascular workout, and it will aid the management of many problems associated with spinal cord injury.

You could win this mountain bike donated by Andy’s Cycle!

Update From The Hudgiks • July 21st

Just doing a little catch up on what David has been doing over the past few weeks.

The weekend of June the 28th the whole family went down to Newport RI for David’s cousin Carl’s wedding. The wedding was right on the docks with the harbor as their backdrop. The weather held off, and it was a beautiful wedding. David had a great time as we were all introduced to the new Couple Mr & Mrs Carl and Danelle Trant.
We wish them much happiness.

We were down for three days so we had time to take in the sights such as the Mansions, the Tennis Hall of Fame, shops, and many other sights.

On the last day we were there David meet a young gentleman working on the docks by the name of Zack who had a spinal cord injury at a lower level than David about ten years ago. Zack offered David a ride on the ferry but we did not have a lot of time. It was getting late in the day and we needed to start working our way back to New Hampshire. (See picture above)

One of our next events will be a 5K Fun Run to be Held August 31st at the Keene High School Cross Country trail.

WE NEED HELP!

We need items to raffle off at the end of the walk. Corporate donations of items such as gift cards and promotional items would be greatly appreciated. Contact me at phudgik@gmail.com or call 603-357-4901.

I would be more than willing to pick the items up.
We are open to all and any ideas people my have to make this event a success.

More information will be following on this event very shortly.

Your help on this event is needed and very much appreciated.

Dave’s Dad Paul

Click here for more photos.

Update From The Hudgiks • June 23rd

A BIG THANK YOU goes out to Christopher Alexay and StingRay Optics for their donation of the remaining funds needed to obtain a manual wheelchair for David.

The next step is to schedule a wheelchair clinic at Cheshire Medical. At the clinic they will size David up for his chair. He will also have an opportunity to test chairs out to see what he would like. Once David chooses a model that will work for him they will build it to suit his physical dimensions and needs. Our hope is to have him in the new chair by the middle to the end of August.

This past Wednesday David, his Mom and myself had an opportunity to go over to StingRay and thank Christopher in person. They surprised David with a tour of their company which gave David a chance to meet all of the people there.

We where amazed at what we learned about their products. One of the things that StingRay does is manufacture high-tech lenses. David and family got to see some of their lenses in action.

The picture above of David and his mom was taken at StingRay Optics with a system that could detect your heat signature. The darker areas are cooler the lighter areas are warmer. The lens could also pickup on a person’s inner beauty. That is why the images are in color. (Not really, I just made that part up.)

We where amazed by what we saw and impressed by the feeling of pride and excitement everyone there had about what they where doing and how they did it. I got the feeling that it was more of an adventure than a job for them.

David is looking forward to getting back to StingRay Optics later this summer to show them his new high-tech chair.

Thank you to everyone at StingRay Optics for taking the time to meet with David and help him move forward in his Journey to Recovery.

To learn more about StingRay Optics go to: Stingrayoptics.com

To see more pictures of David taken at StingRayOptics through their special lenses, click here.

Thank You for Caring,

David’s Dad Paul

 

Stop by David’s Booth at The Keene Pumpkin Festival on October 20th

Come to the Keene Pumpkin Festival this year and show your support for David. David’s booth will be in the Craft Fair section and have baked goods and sweets for sale. Proceeds will go to David’s fundraising campaign. We’re hoping to beat last year’s donation total so that we can help David get a specialized manual wheelchair that he needs to become more independent. Tell all of your friends to go to David’s booth for a snack and a tee shirt!

The Pumpkin Festival is an annual event in Keene, NH. Keene residents and people from around the area will attempt to assemble the largest number of lit jack-o-lanterns in one place, hoping to beat the world record. Bring your carved jack-o-lantern and log it in to be part of the world record tally. If you forgot your pumpkin, you can carve one at the carving station–or adopt one at the Pumpkin Orphanage–and log it in.

This year’s Pumpkin Festival will feature a one mile road race, a 45 foot ferris wheel, a children’s costume parade, pumpkin bowling, live music, craft and art vendors, lots of great food, the spectacular pumpkin tower plus thousands of jack-o-lanterns on street-level displays.

HGTV will be filming a special about the Keene Pumpkin Festival featuring  Drew Scott of “Property Brothers” fame.

There will also be an artistic pumpkin contest on Friday the 19th. Artistic pumpkins will be on display starting at noon on October 19th. To display your artistic pumpkin, register online at PumpkinFestival.org.

The Keene Pumpkin Festival takes place on Saturday, October 20th from noon-8:30 p.m. Find more information at PumpkinFestival.org.