Let's Bring Gary Spaulding Home

Hi, my name is Marlene Green from Lyme, NH. My husband, Dan and I are reaching out to our Community for help on behalf of our friend, Gary Spaulding. Please read Gary's story.

Very few of us will get through this life without at least one, profound, life changing moment. A moment where, between breaths, the earth seems to shift on its axis, and life as you know it irreparably changes, and you must learn to function without a handbook, without instructions, without guidance, and adjust to a completely new normal.

If you are from or live in or nearby Orford, NH, it is likely you know or have met Gary Spaulding. Gary is the guy you call. He is the one who can figure out how to help you with just about any problem, puzzle, or ditch you need to overcome. He is always smiling. Always positive, always upbeat, and a friend to just about anyone he meets. He is respected among his peers, loved by his clients, and it is an honor to be his friend. Unfortunately, Gary, Owner/Operator of Spaulding Landscaping and Property Maintenance in Orford, his amazing wife, Mikayla, and their beautiful toddler, Lydia, have recently had their world shift, and no one saw it coming.

Roughly one month ago, at the start of what promised to be a successful, busy landscaping season, Gary had a headache. He was also just short of being fully immune from COVID after receiving his J&J vaccine less than 2 weeks earlier, so things were really gearing up. Gary does not complain about headaches, so when he landed in the Emergency room at Dartmouth Hitchcock, clearly something serious was going on. Doctors immediately were able to diagnose Lyme Disease, a tick-borne illness not uncommon here and among those who work outside. Treatment was immediately begun, but when the numbness and tingling in the extremities progressed, tests were initiated to determine the cause of the escalating series of symptoms. The devastating diagnosis – Guillain-Barre Syndrome.

Guillain-Barre Syndrome, or GBS, is a rare auto-immune response, usually to some form of infection. Gary’s immune system, fighting Lyme Disease, and overstimulated from the COVID vaccine, went into over-drive and began to attack the myelin, which is the protective insulation that surrounds the central nervous system. Treatment was immediate and successful in arresting the progression of the disease, but not before Gary was almost completely paralyzed.

The good news – about 80% of GBS victims will eventually fully recover, with little or no residual effects. However, rehabilitation is long and arduous, and it can take up to a year to regain feeling and full mobility. Gary is currently at a rehabilitation hospital in Concord, NH and Mikayla is doing her best to support her family and keep the landscaping business running. She has her wonderful parents to help with Lydia, but as you can imagine, she is reaching maximum overload.

Here is where we come in. Can you help? Gary wants to come home. We are reaching out to the Community to do what we can to help ease the financial burden this wonderful family is facing right now. Any amount you can spare would be so gratefully appreciated. Let’s bring Gary home together.