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March 19, 2006
Celebrating Justin's Recovery
On Friday night my family and I were invited to Libby's Cabaret for a celebration of Justin's recovery. We were given the opportunity to get up on stage and thank everyone for all of their donations and support. It was a bit terrifying but I don't think we embarrassed ourselves too bad. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter was there to capture the moment. This was the same one that wrote the previous articles about Justin here and here. It showed up in Saturday's paper in the Lifestyle section under Peach Buzz, page C2. I scanned it so it could be viewed by clicking here or by clicking the photo below. (Opens a new window)
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I was approached by several people that night telling me how much they cared about Justin and thanking me for posting the updates on my blog. I am continually blown away by how much people care. Posting the updates was very difficult early on because it forced me to dwell on something very painful, but being able to post these final updates celebrating his recovery has been rewarding. Thanks again to everyone for their support, prayers and donations. I would especially like to thank Libby for everything that she has done for Justin and our family. She's one in a million.
Posted by pixelbrat at 5:15 PM
March 12, 2006
Justin: a long overdue update
I've gotten a couple of emails recently asking how Justin is doing so I thought I'd do a quick update with the latest on his progress. In a nutshell, he's doing really well. On March 3rd, he graduated from the outpatient rehabilitation program at Shepherd Pathways. He has also been given clearance to take his driving test. Unfortunately there is a really long waiting list to do so. He has an appointment for May 8th to take his test but if there is a cancellation between now and then he may get to take it sooner. His left side facial paralysis has improved remarkably!! Although he doesn't have 100% movement, he is now able to form a full smile where he was not able to do this before. You can see the difference below. The first photo was taken in early January while he was still at the Shepherd Center. The second photo was taken last night at a hockey game.
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Amazing, isn't it? Unfortunately, he still has significant hearing loss in his left ear as well as some slight memory problems. We hope this will improve with time.
I'll share a neat story before I go. As many of you know
Justin is a huge hockey fan. (like his sister 
)
On March 6th he was invited to the Atlanta Thrashers game by his friend and
former boss, Libby Whittemore from Libby's
Cabaret. Libby was singing the national anthem that night but had also
arranged a special surprise for Justin. The Thrashers mascot presented
Justin with a hockey stick that was signed by Marian
Hossa! How cool is that? I'm completely jealous. Below are
a couple of photos that were taken that night by his girlfriend. They are a
little bit on the blurry side but you get the idea.
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As you can see Justin is doing pretty well. All he needs now is to pass his drivers test and he'll be able to return to work.
Posted by pixelbrat at 1:38 PM | Comments (2)