HomeMy WebLinkAbout3.b. Approval of Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month ProclamationROSEMOLINTEXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Idbirm rlLIKE 14
City Council Regular Meeting: September 3, 2013
AGENDA ITEM: Approval of Spinal Cord Injury
AGENDA SECTION:
Awareness Month Proclamation
Presentations
PREPARED BY: Mayor William Droste
AGENDA NO. 3.b.
ATTACHMENTS: Proposed Proclamation, Resident
APPROVED BY:
request
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Motion to Approve the Proclamation
SUMMARY
A Rosemount family has requested that the City Council considering adopting a Proclamation declaring
September as Spinal Cord Awareness Month. More information about the request is provided in
proposed Proclamation and letter from the Quirk family.
4ROSEMOUNT
MINNESOTA
Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month
Whereas, The Minnesota Spinal Cord Injury Association (MNSCIA) is committed to
enriching the lives of people in Minnesota who have been impacted by spinal cord
injury or paralysis. Our members include people who have incurred paralysis or
disability due to a spinal cord injury, their families and friends, healthcare and
rehabilitation professionals, policy makers, and corporations;
Whereas, The Minnesota Spinal Cord Injury Association is recognizing September 2013 as
Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month and understands the need for increased
awareness, education, resources and the investment in research here in Minnesota to
continue to improve the quality of life for individuals with spinal cord injuries;
Whereas, Every 48 minutes someone in the United States is paralyzed from some form of a
Spinal Cord Injury;
Whereas, Currently there is an estimated 1,275,000 individuals in the United States who live
with a spinal cord injury;
Whereas, An estimated 100,000 of those individuals are veterans who were impacted by spinal
cord injury while serving as members of the United States Armed Forces;
Whereas, There are approximately 12,000 additional spinal cord injuries in the United States
each year with 300 being here in Minnesota;
Whereas, Accidents are the leading cause of spinal cord injuries and SCI does not
discriminate;
Whereas, The Minnesota Spinal Cord Injury Association, along with their collaborative
partners Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare, Courage Kenny Rehabilitation
Institute, Medtronic and Unite2Fight Paralysis commends the dedication of local,
regional and national organizations, researchers, doctors, volunteers, and individuals
that are working to improve the quality of life for individuals, family and friends
impacted by SCI.
Now, Therefore, I, William Droste, Mayor of Rosemount Minnesota, do hereby proclaim September
2013 to be Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month in the City of Rosemount,
Minnesota and I encourage individuals and businesses in our City to join in this
observance and get involved in this effort..
Dated this 3rd day of September, 2013
Mayor
Date: August 25, 2013
Bill Droste, Mayor
City of Rosemount
2875 145' St. W.
Rosemount MN 55068
Dear Mayor Droste-
I'm writing to you in hopes you will declare September 2013 as Spinal Cord Injury Awareness
Month in the city of Rosemount. I recently learned Congress is declaring September is National
Spinal Cord Awareness Month.
There's a reason why my family feels this is so important to spread the awareness. In 2010, our
son Cory Quirk was age 14 at the time, living a normal life as a teenager in sports and achieving
high academics. On the morning of April 7, 2010, he woke up with back pain and shrugged off
as an ailment from preparing for baseball tryouts. It was within his first hour of school at
Rosemount Middle School, he started to lose feeling in his fingers. By noon he couldn't lift his
arms. By 3:OOpm he was at Fairview Ridges having initial scans and perplexing the hospital
staff. By 6:OOpm Cory was transported by ambulance to U of M Children's Hospital and put on a
respiratory. Whatever was going on had breached his ability to move all his extremities and
breath on his own. He was paralyzed from his shoulders down. We were stunned!
After days of testing his spinal fluid and reducing the swelling around his spinal cord to allow
movement to return, Cory was diagnosed with transverse myelitis which is a neurological
disorder caused by inflammation across both sides of one level or segment of the spinal cord.
Basically, Cory's immune system failed him and attacked his central nervous system instead of
attacking what was probably a virus. He spent over 40 days in the hospital to relearn to walk
and move his limbs again. We're happy to say he is fully functional with only a few mild deficits
remaining and getting ready to start his senior year of high school.
Mr. Mayor, you will be proud to know your city came through to help our family in so many
ways. We would be honored and proud if you would proclaim September 2013 to be Spinal
Cord Injury Awareness Month in the city of Rosemount for Cory and many others affected by
spinal cord injuries. Enclosed is a form for you to review and complete
Thank you for your consideration and service to Rosemount.
Sincerely,
� �(-� kWAL-
Vicki Quirk and the family of Cory Quirk