Profile in Courage

Every now and then we come across people with interesting, sometimes even inspiring life stories to share, which was what exactly happened to Bart and me this past Memorial weekend. I was sitting next to a couple at the wedding reception of two special friends when Bart asked the man how his son who had had an accident was doing. I knew I had met this couple somewhere but it was only until Bart asked the question that I remembered where and when.
It was Joe and Veronica delos Reyes, the Christian couple and nurse-owners of Affinity Home Health Services,Inc we met at Lydia’s Bible fellowship. I noticed the obvious sadness in the couple’s eyes, especially in Joe’s and found out in his testimony that their 22-year-old son,Paul, had just had a terrible accident. He was responding to a call for help from a friend one rainy evening when he was hit by a truck while pushing his car in the rain. To save the boy’s life, the doctors had to amputate one of his legs.

“He’s doing very well,” Joe replied. And like every proud father, he told us how his son made an amazing recovery, finished his nursing degree and currently works as Affinity’s Administrator. Joe recounted his own personal grief as he tried to grapple with the aftermath of his son’s accident. The younger one of his two sons asked him why he was crying and reminded his father of his own teachings about God’s promise. True enough, with faith like a rock, Paul, his injured son, took control of his situation and did not let his accident ruin his life forever.
As a writer, I couldn’t resist sharing his story with my MegaScene readers especially in this post Memorial weekend issue. Paul’s story of courage may not parallel the countless stories of our soldiers’ valor and heroic deeds but it can certainly speak to people who fight their daily battles of depression, frustrations, pain, grief, etc. I think, too, of that 12-year-old Filipino girl from Queens, who hang herself to death with a belt because of her classmates’ cyber-bullying. It’s a sad fact that there hadn’t been anyone around her to provide support and proper guidance – the absence of which led to her untimely death. On the other hand, Paul’s strong faith in God and the prayers of his family and friends that carried him through his terrifying ordeal.
Here’s Paul, in his own words, recounting his life-changing experience.
It was July 24, 2010. I was at my friend’s house because I decided to spend the night there. We were playing videogames till 1:00AM. All of a sudden I received a phone call from another friend telling me that he was stuck in traffic because there was really bad traffic due to an unknown cause (it was a flood that occurred in that area). He asked if I could do him a favor, come and get him and he would hang out with us. Around 20 minutes after his phone call, my friend Vince and I dropped our controllers, grabbed the keys to my car and headed out to one of the longest nights of my life.

When we left the house there was barely any rain in our area. 10 minutes after we left, it started pouring, raining harder and harder to the point where I could barely see the road even when my windshield wipers were at its fastest. During my whole 21 years living in Chicago I’ve never seen rain as hard as it did that night.
The rain was the least of my problems since there was also a power outage in the area which made it pitch black, as it continued raining harder and harder. It was around 2AM at this point. I was struggling to see if there were any cars ahead of me, and all of a sudden my car started sinking into a HUGE flood and had gotten swept by the current and stuck in a pothole. I was muddy, and soaking wet by this point in just a t-shirt, shorts, and flip flops. Thank goodness for the other people who were around who came and helped push my car out after 20 minutes against the strong current of the flood. I remember someone who helped me saying, “You should park on a side street and leave the car there until morning”. I didn’t listen. I started pushing it towards my house still drenched and covered with mud. My friend who was with me claimed that an SUV came and hit my car with me right behind it at around 30-40mph. That person then reversed, and drove away. No one had seen that SUV after that.

I would not have survived that impact. All I can say is that I am so grateful that I have a God that is so good to me. I was transferred to one of the best trauma centers in the country, Loyola Hospital. As I was laying in a coma, the only thing I’ll never forget for the rest of my life was my short conversation with God. The only thing I can clearly remember was, “I have plans for you.” Next thing I knew, I woke up, just like in a movie. Doctors kept me in the ICU, with countless calls to my parents saying I was suffering from a high fever and they had to keep amputating due to bacteria from the water. It ended up being my leg or my life. Eight surgeries later, my entire right leg was amputated and I became an ‘AKA’ or above the knee amputee as they call it, for life. I didn’t realize what had happened, I had the blankets covering my entire body and when they told me to remove them, I turned pale white in disbelief. I thought my life was over at that point. I can’t even explain the feelings that raced through my mind, finishing school, being able to play the sports I so loved and grew up with, such as basketball, football, baseball. I was even an all-around gymnast at one point in my life. I also thought about my future, how would I teach my kid how to ride a bike? Or find a wife nonetheless? All I can really say is that I’m glad that I’ve been given another opportunity in this world and I look forward to the future because life has so much to offer. Also, thank you who are reading this, who have supported me, prayed for me, was there by my side when I needed you I thank you who still look at me as the same old P.A. You know who you are and I do, too. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Paul continues to dream and build his future. He wants to get a master’s degree in Nursing and will continue working as a nurse. He will advocate positive thinking and inspire people to continue on and not give up, whatever their circumstances might be.