I just got this update on Stu.

Hi Everyone,

Here is the latest update on Stuart's progress from Jeri.....

Stuart has been continuing to make progress while he’s at Craig Hospital.  He is improving in his physical skills and is walking and needing his wheelchair only for when he is tired.  He is also becoming more aware of himself and what has happened to him.  While he doesn’t remember the accident he does realize what he can’t do which is very frustrating for him.  He's still in a confused state which could last another month or so but he is understanding more and we are starting to see his memory of things from day to day improve.  He still gets into agitated states where he is frustrated and upset and unfortunately this increases his confusion.  His speech has progressed quite well in his class where he focuses really well on what he is saying.  Outside of class he doesn't have the same level of focus and it can deteriorate a bit.  They feel once he's out of this confused state he'll do well because he'll be able to concentrate on what he's saying

He has progressed to the point that I am allowed to take him on day trips during the weekends.  We’ve visited parks, a bike shop and Red Rocks Amphitheatre which he has enjoyed.  He really enjoys eating lunch out rather than the food in the cafeteria but usually declines visiting Starbucks once I tell him he has to have decaf.  The trips can be quite overwhelming for him with all the traffic, people and noise but each week he gets more comfortable with it.

We’re hoping he’ll be coming home in early November and I’ve been working with the folks at Craig to understand the changes needed to our home to make this happen.  We’re blessed he’s made such good progress and the modifications to our home will be very limited.  Thanks so much for all your support and offers of help, once Stuart is home and has gotten through that transition I’ll have a much better idea of what this next part of our journey holds for us and what help we’ll need.

Thanks,

Jeri

This update was provided by Stuarts sister Lisa via the site forum.  You can read all the updates there.

Hello friends of Stuart and Jeri,
Stuart continues to improve.  He is walking with a walker now (but only in physical therapy). The rest of the time he is still in bed or belted into his wheelchair.  His memory is starting to return, but it only highlights the fact that, gee, he used to have way more freedom and do way more things than he can do in the hospital...so he gets frustrated.  But he is starting to remember the names of his doctors and nurses, and a friend visited and Stu knew his name, too.  All signs of continued progress!
Thank you for your continued positive thoughts and wishes!
Lisa

Up for auction is a signed Columbia-HTC jersey and hat and two 90 minute massages.

The jersey and hat were  generously donated by team member Michael Barry and the massages were donated by Amara Massage to help raise additional money for Stuart and his family. The jersey is an authentic team-issue with “Barry” and the Canadian flag on the back. These cannot be purchased and are exclusive to team members only. The jersey was recently signed by the following riders:

Kanstantsin Siutsou









Auction will run until 10pm on Sunday Oct. 4th.

Place your bid on the site Forum

I received the following email directly from Stuart Culp's wife Jeri:

I wanted to send our thanks to all of you that are following Stuart’s progress.  We received the cards that Dan collected and we are truly overwhelmed by your generosity and well wishes.  The fact they ranged from good friends to acquaintances to complete strangers touched our hearts.  After we read through them all our 10 year old daughter sat back and said “I feel very loved right now’.  Her response told me that you had achieved your goal and I wanted you all to know that.  Stuart has a long road to recovery ahead of him.  But we know with the support of you all we’ll succeed.

Here is the latest update on his condition.  Remember, Stuarts family provides updates every Friday evening on the site forum.

Hello once again to all of Stuart and Jeri's friends,
I spent Labor Day weekend with Stu and his family, and then my brother John came for a day on Wednesday.
We are encouraged by Stu's steady progress.  He started eating real food, and so they removed his feeding tube (yay, his last tube!).  His appetite is terrific!  His speech is improving, and the percentage of "real" words versus "non-words" is improving.  Jeri reported having an actual conversation with him about the food he was eating.  But he tires quickly and then the "non-words" take over.
He really wants to get out of his wheelchair, but he is literally held in by a locking seat belt because his judgement and balance are not developed enough yet.  I predict that we will see rapid physical improvement in the near future.  His shoulders, which took the brunt of the impact, still hurt quite a bit, and his range of motion is very limited, but his lower body seems to be fine (just weak).
I read about the Spin-a-thon to benefit Stuart and his family. Once more we are very touched and grateful to the wonderful Fort Collins community for all they have done.  It has been a tremendous help, and we thank all of you so much.  No wonder the magazines continue to rate Fort Collins as one of the best towns in the country to live in!
Sincerely,
Lisa (and John and Holly)

The Culps still have a long road ahead of them please continue to support them by sending gift cards to:

Stuart Culp

C/O Dan Porter
5220 Boardwalk Dr. Unit C11
Fort Collins, CO 80525