Help Rossi

Since Ross was injured, hundreds of people have volunteered to help, should Ross need anything. Furthermore, several people have inquired about a fundraiser for my brother. To be honest, I have waited to learn exactly what my brother is up against before taking any action. As luck would have it, Ross’ HMO insurance isn’t as great as we had hoped it would be. There are many, many expenses that are not covered. Furthermore, red tape and poor planning on the hospital’s part is going to leave Ross without any physical therapy sessions for several weeks, once he is sent home this coming Thursday.
There is a crew of amazing guys working on Ross’ home right now,. remodeling the bathroom so that he will be able to access the shower and commode. Our friend Mike Young - also a paraplegic - has been super helpful with advice and equipment, and has also put us in touch with the good people at Colours wheelchairs. At the moment, Ross has a loaner from Colours, but he will need to purchase his own, soon enough. As best I understand it, insurance covers $5000 for “equipment,” and that includes all of the stuff already used and billed to the insurance company at the hospital. That said, there’s a pretty good chance that Ross’ chair might not even be covered by insurance. Being his little brother, I obviously want to get Ross the baddest-ass chair possible, and I am fully willing to take care of this for him. Beyond that, though, there are obvious smaller costs to get his home set up for his day-to-day life. (Until he is up and walking, that is!)
I have a fundraiser/ride day in the works for December 6th at Perris Raceway, and more details will follow shortly. In the short term, however, I’ve had these support bracelets made up for Ross. One side says “Rossi,” and the other has a saying that he has so often told me when I was looking for advice: “Try Hard.” Ross is trying hard, harder than any of us probably understand, in his quest to get better. Want to support Ross and help him with some of his initial expenses this week as he goes home?
Send a minimum donation of $5.00 (oh yes, you can send more if you’d like), and I will send a bracelet and a support sticker. Amazingly, we’ve already gone through 600 of the stickers…I wish I had the foresight to ask for a donation before (haha). Again, I thank all of you for your support of Ross. He has been overwhelmed by the cards, letters, well wishes, and posts on his CARING BRIDGE guestbook.

Donations for bracelets may be sent to:

TransWorld Motocross

Dept. Help Rossi

1421 Edinger Ave., Suite D

Tustin, CA 92780

Checks for more than $5.00 should be made out to Eileen Maeda. That’s right, Ross’ wife is also named Eileen. Damn, I’ve been trying to be like him forever…