It was a happy moment when I was able to drop out and visit Bobbie and Sean Luken last week. Truly a miracle for sure to see him up and walking (with a couple of canes of course). Their lives took a serious left turn back on September 27, 2023 and now six months later through intensive surgery and rehab, Sean is back in the Bulkley Valley.
Bobbie and Sean have put together some words of information and gratitude they would like to share:
Sean fell 35 feet from a tree he was limbing just outside of town. The job was not complicated; his fall was caused by a momentary lapse of attention. In more than 40 years of tree work he has rarely ever fallen and certainly not this badly.
Sean was taken by ambulance to B.V.D.H. where he was properly stabilized before being medivaced to Vancouver General Hospital. There, he was in the intensive care ward on a ventilator for 63 days and underwent six surgeries.
His worst injury was to his right lung that was severely damaged by the fall and [he had] 12 broken ribs. Five of these ribs were repaired by plating with titanium bars. This is a new type of surgery that he was fortunate to receive.
Sean also broke his vertebrae and his left hip. There were no head injuries and no lasting spinal injuries. He lost 80 pounds while in I.C.U. and regaining this weight and his strength have been the major challenges for him.
After I.C.U. Sean spent another 68 days at V.G.H. then 28 days in the rehabilitation unit at UHNBC in Prince George. He arrived home on March 9. Studies have shown that long stays in I.C.U. can require up to 24 months of healing so by this estimate Sean should be back to normal in 2025. Will he do tree work again? We don’t know.
Sean would like to extend his deep gratitude to the community for the kind and generous donations given to him. People gave money to him through a B.V. Credit Union account, a Mountain Eagle Books collection, A GoFundMe account and the 100 Women Who Care - B.V. group.
The response from the community toward Sean has absolutely helped his healing by offering prayer, love, and safety. The donations made by the community total close to $110,000. This is a huge amount of money.
Sean has received Work Safe B.C. compensation so all his expenses and costs to his family have been covered. Because he is unsure of whether he will return to work he is appreciative of this financial net that will help support him over the next few years. He plans to donate $10,000 to B.V.D.H.
Sean’s family would like to acknowledge these donations and agree that he is a very special man. We would also like to thank everyone for their care of us, especially those who kept in regular communication with affirmations, encouragements, and updates on community events.
In particular, we would like to thank the paramedics, BVDH, VGH, and UHNBC staff. Rick Budhwa, Don Goalder, Hans Zantingh, Janet Walford, Michelle and Wayne Whittemore, Stephanie Capyk and Darren Jakobec for their help and support.
There you have it, this is one tough guy making his way back. Good luck you two.
So on a less dramatic note, this will be my last regular column. I have completed my three-year self-mandated term and it has been a truly fun and rewarding experience. I hope to continue to write periodic columns on a less regular time frame.
I would like to thank Thom Barker, editor of The Interior News for giving me the opportunity and especially thank my readers for their encouragement and, of course, my wife Sara for her technical collaboration.
- Tom Roper