Highlands and Anderson fund raise as a team! Proceeds to benefit the family of Clay Frink What: During their Varsity and JV soccer games on Tuesday, September 11, the soccer players and coaching staffs of Highlands and Anderson high schools will work together to support Clay Frink, a junior at Highlands High School who suffered significant head trauma after being struck by a car in July.
Clay played soccer on the Highlands team and also participated in club soccer outside of the school.
Both teams will wear shirts supporting Clay’s recovery, and similar shirts will be offered for sale to the public.
Each shirt will sell for $10 and all proceeds raised from the sale of the shirts will be presented to Clay’s family to assist with the cost of his recovery.
Who: Open to the Public
Where: Highlands Soccer Field - Tower Park
Fort Thomas, KY 41075
When: Tuesday, September 11 at 5 and 6:45 p.m.
Information below courtesy of “
Pray for Clay” Facebook page
UPDATE:9/10/12 (Day 42) - (NECK) FREEDOM!!!
It's dinner time in room 73 and it smells of Gold Star Chili. Clay must have worked up an apatite(not for his green beans though) at PT and OT because he is forking more in his mouth than can fit, don't worry it's not slowing him down any.
It's has to feel great to have his NECK BRACE OFF(at about 5pm)!
The nurses were even racing to be the one to take the brace off today, everyone here at the hospital knows Clay wanted the brace gone for so long after the many attempts at trying to take it off himself.
Clay watched extra carefully as the brace was taken away, to make sure that it was gone for sure.
Salutations Neck brace, you won't be missed!
Clay's up for a chill evening, seeing some friends, and hanging out with his favorite cousin on his dad's side!
-Cousin Love, Emily
UPDATE:
8-29-12 SMILING AND GRINNING AND LAUGHING
Aunt Caryn here. Clay rocked in OT/PT this afternoon. Sitting up on his own for brief periods. He kicked a little ball with each foot, soccer style. He was walking on parallel bars with some help and giving Uncle Mike high fives after each lap. At one point, four of us with Clay were distracted and quick as a blink, Clay pulled out his feeding tube for the FOURTH TIME. I saw Uncle Mike give Clay a thumbs up and Clay returned a full smile. It was beautiful to see. They will have to put one back in later but Clay is loving it for now! He was playful this afternoon, trying to swipe therapist Kelly's ipod and put it in his pocket and smiling about it. Clay is rolling over in bed. He is focusing on the little round visitor stickers we all have to wear to get up in the elevator and onto Clay's unit to see him. I took mine off and gave it to Clay and he "slapped" it back on me. Amber and Sterling and Jackson arrived. We told Clay you have to have a sticker to get in here, we said, "no sticker, no elevator, no Clay". Clay reached out and took Sterling's sticker off of him and put it on himself and we all laughed, even Clay. We were joking around with him, and Clay got another toothy grin! Seen more smiles today than ever!
More good news.... Speech Therapy cleared Clay and he can have FOOD! Starting tomorrow, he will have breakfast. He has a special diet and consistency restrictions, so Clay has guidelines and rules. The therapist is going to teach us how to help Clay with his eating and swallowing. This is such a huge step. The better Clay gets at eating, the sooner that dreaded tube can come out and and stay out for good! We were trying to ask Clay which items from the menu he would like for breakfast tomorrow and he got a little frustrated and took the menu out of Sterling's hand and consulted it himself.
Just finished putting the feeding tube back in and we were all prepared to help hold him down if necessary, but Clay did not resist at all, in fact he cooperated. He looked sad, though. I think he knew it had to be done and just put up with it. He hasn't tried to pull it out since.
Now, Coach G. and John Michael are visiting and Clayton is smiling again at soccer stories and the "pudding story", Neal tells about Clay's early attempts at swallowing. Just so you know, all the cards the team wrote to Clay were read to him by Sterling, and Clay gave a huge thumbs up when Sterling finished reading the cards aloud.
So for those keeping track, Clay has been awake, alert and interactive from 1pm this afternoon until now, 6:35 pm. No signs of tiring. Such endurance! Clay said "blue" today. He also is trying to communicate his needs by pantomime or acting out what he wants. His short term memory is improving... we were just talking about something that happened an hour ago and Amber asked his to repeat a certain action and he did and we all laughed again. Clayton is smiling so much, every minute or so.
Well, it's almost 7 pm now, and the wind is finally luffing in Clayton's sails and his eyes are getting droopy. Yep, now he is asleep.
Such a good day! Hope he dreams of breakfast!
UPDATE:
8/7/2012 21:00 - The New Normal
At Children’s they recently got new formatted white boards in each room for the nurses to status info like who's on, what are goals for the day, and pertinent notes. It is a tool for lots of people to use. I frequently give it a quick look to confirm I know people's names (I'm not so good with names). The nurses like the new tool with its added structure means and expectations for sharing info.
So... updates on the board for today:
OJ Tube successfully placed, ICP monitor removed, OT/PT, healing touch, and music therapy all happening. Still waiting for MRI, which may happen tomorrow or Thursday. Check.
Clay continues to make slow, steady and sure progress. We're very proud of him. We're out of the immediate post impact period and I think Pam and I are both a little daunted. Not to beat an analogy to death, but it's like we reached the top of the first incline on the run, put our hands on our hips, and got a first clear(ish) view of the enormity of the challenge ahead. We recognize that for the foreseeable future our "new normal" is going to be a long grueling haul, but we are not alone.
We continue to receive daily affirmations and encouragements from friends... old, new, longtime, and never met. We are enveloped in prayers and a blanket of peace that is beyond our understanding. We are daily being provisioned by people in our community with financial, culinary, transportation, and care support for Clay. Monday we ate a dish called "Philadelphia Mac and Cheese Steak." It tasted ad good as it sounds.
We're also seeing people support each other, even as they are working to lift our family up. And we're especially amazed and pleased by Clay and Simon's peers. They may be young, but they have a more robust and active faith than many with far more years under (or hanging over) their belts. We can deal with the world of the "new normal" if it is inhabited by the amazing people who have been filling our life recently. Seriously, you guys rock!
We'll probably adjust updates to one good lengthy one on Clayton's medical status each day after rounds with fewer interim updates unless there is something notable. If you don't see an interim update, you can assume all is OK.
Cheers to the good life and life in the new normal...that is, until we move into the "new, new normal." We love and appreciate you. - Neal
About Like this page to show support and love for Clay Frink and his family. Updates will be posted when available and your notes of encouragement, support and love will surely bolster the Frink family as they navigate this difficult time.
Description Early Monday afternoon Clay got hit by a car at the corner of Highland and Ft. Thomas Avenues. Just an unlucky, freaky accident, but he got hurt pretty bad. Fort Thomas fire and police departments got us to Children's Hospital (Chris Rust & crew and Chief Daly were awesome). They handed us off to the super staff at Childrens, including Chaplain Paul who was like an angel standing at our side. We couldn't be in better hands. Clay's body is in good shape, but his head has several fractures and his brain is bruised up. Docs said it only takes an instant to get hurt badly, but it takes time and rest to get better. Time, rest, and your prayers for God to send healing. Please pray for Clayton's full recovery and for his care team - who are the best - to be super smart and aware of Clay's every medical need. Also, please pray with us that Clay knows how much he is loved and cared for and that God deposits that knowledge in his heart as a wellspring to fuel his body's recovery.
Clay and his family will need your support in LOTS more ways. We'll keep you updated on other ways you can help as soon as we figure it out. In the mean time, just knowing you are there is huge. I'm sure Clay would want his soccer buddies to keep training hard so that when he is able, he can reconnect with a team that is firing on all cylinders. Clay is a hard worker at Twisty Grill and needs everyone there to make sure that quality remains high while he is out. His brother Simon will have to hold up family honors on League of Legends for the time being - he'll need a good Support and Jungler if you have skills and time to kill. Clay will miss connecting with his DGroup friends at HUMC, but you can reach him though your prayers.
“LIKE” Pray for Clay Facebook Page Next upcoming event for Clay is schedule for Sept. 23 at Highland United Methodist Church in Fort Thomas.
Click here to see Facebook invite.
