Help Todd Foote Recover from Stroke

My name is James Foote and my big brother, Todd Foote, suffered a stroke on the evening of Tuesday, September 13, 2022.

Todd was having a normal day off from the Conch House Marina on Tuesday - spending the day hanging out with friends, playing bocce ball, hitting the gym, and going to the shooting range. Tuesday evening while alone at home, the stroke occurred, leaving him paralyzed on the left side of his body.

It wasn't until Wednesday morning that Todd sent me a text message - one that I will never forget:

Hey bro - Think I had a stroke yesterday when I got home from range. Can't use my left arm/leg. Stuck on floor.

I raced to his house, just a couple of minutes down the street from my home. He was locked inside and couldn't get to the door to let me in.

I immediately called 9-1-1 and attempted to gain entry through one of his windows. In just a few minutes, firefighters, and EMTs arrived and quickly entered. Without much discussion, they made a decision that likely saved Todd's life by opting to take him to the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL.

Within 90-minutes, Todd was in surgery with two of the top surgeons in the world to clear two blockages from his carotid artery. The surgery lasted an agonizing 5-hours and was fairly successful.

The doctors were able to clear the first blockage, closer to the heart, but were unable to completely clear the second blockage closest to his brain. Because of this, Todd was transferred to the ICU and put on medication to allow his body to take care of the problem while on round-the-clock care from the best in the business.

Todd remained in the ICU for over seven days as his brain recovered and his blood vessels built new passageways to the brain to restore movement on his left side. During this time, his speech and vision improved dramatically. He began to regain feeling in limited parts of the left side of his body. And his sense of humor started to come back again, much to our delight.

On day seven-and-a-half, Todd was discharged from the ICU at the Mayo Clinic and transferred to an inpatient rehabilitation facility in St. Augustine where he will spend the next few weeks undergoing intense therapy to help him recover.

Now the journey really begins.

As is common with stroke, there is no clear outlook on how Todd will recover. He has shown great signs thus far, but he has a long road ahead. No one is sure if we are talking about days, weeks, months, or years at this point, but I wouldn't bet against the big guy.

When Todd was admitted to the rehab facility, the intake nurse asked him what his goal was in recovery.

Todd simply stated:

To get back to 100% and get back to work ASAP.

Todd loves what he does. He loves the people he works with. He loves the people he serves. And most of all, he loves his friends, his baby niece, his family, and our dogs. He has no shortage of motivation and we can't wait until he can walk out of rehab and get back to his life.

On behalf of Todd, I humbly ask for your financial assistance to aid in his recovery.

Surgery, ambulance, intensive care, inpatient rehab, outpatient rehab, and future support are looming bills & expenses that Todd will face.

Todd has always given more to people than he has asked or received - if it were up to him, he wouldn't ask for a dime.

But this hill is just too steep for any one man to climb alone.

Please consider donating to help Todd get back to work and get back to making the world a better place.

On behalf of Todd, thank you for your kindness and generosity. We appreciate you.

- James Foote