John Dowling and Family

As many of you know, John Dowling (husband of Joan and father of Kate DeVito and Kristen Lyons) suffered a severe spinal cord injury on June 23rd. This accident has been a major life altering event, but everyone that knows John is beyond grateful that he is alive and knows that he is going to continue to give it his all to recover to his fullest potential.

Many people have been asking how they can help and nobody really knows how to respond. The family is already so grateful for the amazing family and friends that have been sending love and prayers, cards, spending time with John, helping with the grandkids, and more! This thoughtfulness is greatly appreciated and immeasurable.

A lot has had to change because of the injury. To begin with, the house needs major renovations to prepare for John being at home. This means a ramp, handicap bathroom installation, and other changes to prepare for a wheelchair. Additionally, the medical supplies for John to safely be at home are a necessity and not much is covered by insurance. A hospital bed, specialized chair, tilting wheelchair and more are only the beginning of what needs to be purchased. Never mind the medical bills that are coming in and will continue. Joan, though more than willing to help, isn’t able to care for John 100% of the time. A home health aide will need to be hired which also isn’t covered by insurance. Since the accident, John’s business has not been able to “run on all cylinders.” The employees have been incredibly resilient and hard working, but it is not the same without John there to be the “quarterback for the team.”

With all of this being said, some friends thought it would be helpful to set up a Go Fund Me to try to ease some of the expenses. Please do not feel compelled to donate, your love and support continues to be what the family needs. We just thought we would put this out there because we know so many people have been wanting to know how to help such a wonderful man and his family.