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- Jan 14, 2012
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Hi Friends,
Now that I've had a breather day or two after Christmas, I want to share a story with you that will probably give you all kinds of goosebumps…
As many of you know, I was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii but I live in Massachusetts now. My Dad still lives there (my Mom died 7 years ago). Five days before Thanksgiving this year, my Dad was pulling out of a parking lot in his hometown when he suffered a stroke. He pulled into oncoming traffic and hit another car head on. Fortunately, neither person was injured as the cars were going fairly slow. My Dad was out of it but managed to try and get out of the car to see if everyone was okay. As he tells it, a woman kept telling him to get back in his car and sit down. Shortly after the accident, an ambulance arrived and by then, my Dad was really succumbing to the effects of the stroke and was hardly able to talk. The paramedics, puzzled by his behavior, began calling recently dialed numbers on his phone, hoping to get a friend or family member.
The first person they called was my Dad's sister. They said, "Do you know a man with white hair who drives a blue car?" She hung up on them, thinking it was a prank call. They then called the next number, that belonged to my sister-in-law Michelle. She lives in North Carolina but happened to be visiting Hawaii, where she does some business as a pharmaceutical representative. The paramedics said, "Do you know a man with white hair who drives a blue car?" She said, "Yes, it's my father-in-law-- he owns the phone you're calling from. Did he lose his phone?" They said, "No. He's been in a car accident and we need to know if he's on any medication because his actions are unusual right now."
She said, "It's not the car accident right here in front of City Mill, is it??" She was standing in the same parking lot!!! They affirmed that it was, and she ran over to the car and was able to jump in the ambulance with my Dad. She overheard the driver saying they were going to a hospital called Straub. From her medical connections, she knew that Queen's Hospital had a whole floor dedicated to stroke and neurological trauma. She told them to take him to Queen's. They said the staff was waiting at Straub. Again, she said, "Cancel the order and take us to Queen's." The paramedics finally listened to her and took him to Queen's. They did an MRI and found a blood clot in his brain. At that point, he was largely unresponsive and paralyzed on one side. Miraculously, the clot was the right type and was within a certain window for my Dad to qualify for a dose of a powerful drug called "TPA." He received the dose, it broke up the clot within an hour and he was fully recovered and out of the hospital in 2.5 days. He's doing very well now and is back living a normal life but now includes a blood thinner in his daily regimen which he had been advised to take but never did.
Some other amazing things: my daughter and I rushed out to Hawaii when we heard the news. My best friend in the world, who I have known since kindergarten but now we live minutes from each other in Massachusetts, happened to be in Hawaii with her family, burying her Dad who had passed away recently. So, my daughter and I were able to attend the services.
Also, we got the police report back and all the witnesses were male. We don't know who the woman was who was caring for my Dad right after the accident. Guardian angel, perhaps?
All I know is, my Mom was most definitely pulling some strings up there that day. Imagine-- if my Aunt hadn't hung up on the paramedics, my Dad might not be alive today. Pretty amazing story, huh? Thought I would put a smile on your face today.
Now that I've had a breather day or two after Christmas, I want to share a story with you that will probably give you all kinds of goosebumps…
As many of you know, I was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii but I live in Massachusetts now. My Dad still lives there (my Mom died 7 years ago). Five days before Thanksgiving this year, my Dad was pulling out of a parking lot in his hometown when he suffered a stroke. He pulled into oncoming traffic and hit another car head on. Fortunately, neither person was injured as the cars were going fairly slow. My Dad was out of it but managed to try and get out of the car to see if everyone was okay. As he tells it, a woman kept telling him to get back in his car and sit down. Shortly after the accident, an ambulance arrived and by then, my Dad was really succumbing to the effects of the stroke and was hardly able to talk. The paramedics, puzzled by his behavior, began calling recently dialed numbers on his phone, hoping to get a friend or family member.
The first person they called was my Dad's sister. They said, "Do you know a man with white hair who drives a blue car?" She hung up on them, thinking it was a prank call. They then called the next number, that belonged to my sister-in-law Michelle. She lives in North Carolina but happened to be visiting Hawaii, where she does some business as a pharmaceutical representative. The paramedics said, "Do you know a man with white hair who drives a blue car?" She said, "Yes, it's my father-in-law-- he owns the phone you're calling from. Did he lose his phone?" They said, "No. He's been in a car accident and we need to know if he's on any medication because his actions are unusual right now."
She said, "It's not the car accident right here in front of City Mill, is it??" She was standing in the same parking lot!!! They affirmed that it was, and she ran over to the car and was able to jump in the ambulance with my Dad. She overheard the driver saying they were going to a hospital called Straub. From her medical connections, she knew that Queen's Hospital had a whole floor dedicated to stroke and neurological trauma. She told them to take him to Queen's. They said the staff was waiting at Straub. Again, she said, "Cancel the order and take us to Queen's." The paramedics finally listened to her and took him to Queen's. They did an MRI and found a blood clot in his brain. At that point, he was largely unresponsive and paralyzed on one side. Miraculously, the clot was the right type and was within a certain window for my Dad to qualify for a dose of a powerful drug called "TPA." He received the dose, it broke up the clot within an hour and he was fully recovered and out of the hospital in 2.5 days. He's doing very well now and is back living a normal life but now includes a blood thinner in his daily regimen which he had been advised to take but never did.
Some other amazing things: my daughter and I rushed out to Hawaii when we heard the news. My best friend in the world, who I have known since kindergarten but now we live minutes from each other in Massachusetts, happened to be in Hawaii with her family, burying her Dad who had passed away recently. So, my daughter and I were able to attend the services.
Also, we got the police report back and all the witnesses were male. We don't know who the woman was who was caring for my Dad right after the accident. Guardian angel, perhaps?
All I know is, my Mom was most definitely pulling some strings up there that day. Imagine-- if my Aunt hadn't hung up on the paramedics, my Dad might not be alive today. Pretty amazing story, huh? Thought I would put a smile on your face today.
