Help Stefan Foord Overcome His Stroke

Dear Friends and Family,

Early on the morning of June 1st, 47-year-old Stefan Foord suffered a massive stroke in his home. Before that day, he was healthy, active, and had no apparent risk factors, so the stroke came as a lightning bolt out of the clear blue sky. Even amid catastrophically bad luck, Stefan was fortunate. His wife, Ellen, found him quickly and called 911, first responders arrived within minutes, and he was at the hospital in time to receive the clot-busting drug that saved his life.

All the same, Stefan is now faced with a long and grueling recovery from a stroke that affected 80-90% of the right side of his brain, leaving him with left-sided weakness, a loss of his left field of vision, and left-sided neglect, which is the loss of awareness of the left side of his body. Less visible, but similarly devastating, the right side of the brain is the center of visual processing, analysis, hand-eye coordination, and visuospatial skills - all of which are critically important in Stefan’s work as a master craftsman, welder, fabricator, and mechanic.

Stefan has always been passionate about his work and has twenty years of experience working on European cars. In 2017, Stefan and Ellen launched Arcs and Wrenches, a shop specializing in building BMW, Porsche, and Audi race cars, as well as vintage restorations and regular maintenance of European cars. Stefan has spent the past seven years building Arcs and Wrenches from the ground up, pouring his heart and soul into the business, and now he finds himself facing a long recovery and an uncertain timeline for his return to his beloved shop.

After spending two weeks in the hospital, Stefan is now in the acute rehab phase of his recovery and is focused on regaining mobility, strength, and function. Ellen, his wife, co-owner, and consummate hype man, has been by his side since the stroke, stepping up into multiple new roles in addition to her job as Creative Director for the City of Boston. While Stefan works hard to get back to being fully himself, Ellen is now responsible for coordinating Stefan's care and well-being, caring for their 13-year-old daughter as a solo parent, coordinating with customers of Arcs and Wrenches, and initiating a renovation and retrofit project to ensure their home is safe and accessible for Stefan’s return. The pressure on all three of the Foords right now is intense, overwhelming, and all-consuming.

The road ahead will be challenging for the Foord family, and the stress of a growing mountain of medical expenses will add to the financial strain of going from a two-income family to a one-income family. The recovery timeline from a stroke is 9-12 months, so the Foords need our support, now and for the foreseeable future.

We are asking for your support to help alleviate the burden on Stefan, Ellen, and their daughter during this time. No matter the size, every contribution will make a difference, allowing the Foords to focus on Stefan's recovery instead of the stress of financial concerns.

Thank you for considering supporting Stefan, Ellen, and their daughter. Whether you are family, friend, neighbor, a loyal customer of Arcs and Wrenches, a colleague of Ellen's, or know their daughter, your generosity and kindness mean the world. We are grateful for your support as the Foords navigate this challenging chapter. They have decided to call this the Big Intermission - an unexpected break from the main show, but not the ending by any means, and they are all looking forward to seeing what adventures Act Two has in store for this tight-knit family of three.

With love and gratitude,

The Family & Friends of the Foords