Last winter, Brooks Secondary School teacher Jerry Reghelin suffered a rare brain injury. He was airlifted to Vancouver General Hospital and underwent an emergency procedure to relieve pressure on his skull.
It was determined he had experienced a ruptured arteriovenous malformation. He was unconscious and not expected to survive.
Six months later, the beloved teacher is able to walk and talk and is rehabilitating at home in Powell River with his wife Natalie Kreter and three young sons: Raffy, Solomon and Dante.
“It’s absolutely miraculous,” said close family friend Deborah Miller. “We are still so baffled and thankful.”
Reghelin said his swift and unexpected recovery can be attributed to the massive outpouring of love and support he received from his wife, family and friends, and the greater community of Powell River.
“It’s just been incredible,” he said. “To be back with my family and living at home is so therapeutic just in and of itself.”
Although he is back to his old self mentally, physically he is still a work in progress, he said.
“I have a long way to go to fully recover,” said Reghelin. “I’m still what they categorize as hemiplegia, one half of my body is mostly paralyzed and my left side is not much use to me. I definitely have some challenges but we’re taking it day by day.”
He is working with physiotherapists to increase strength, but that also involves the need for rest, something Miller said she believes must be frustrating for someone who has always been active.
“He doesn’t want to sit in a comfy chair; he wants to do it now and he knows his body is not ready,” she said. “He’s tired because his brain is healing, but he’s going to get stronger. Jerry won’t be held back by anything.”
Time to think has made Reghelin feel depths of gratitude, he said, not only for the people around him but for his country, job and union.
“One thing that rings clearly through all of this for me is how fortunate I am because we live in a country where I have incredible medical care, all for free,” he added. “I have good insurance wage indemnity through my employer and my union, so I’m not totally flat broke because I’ve been off of work for six months.”
Reghelin looks to the future with a great deal of optimism, he said. His short-term goals include getting up Powell Lake to the cabin he and his family share with the Millers; a longer term goal is returning to work.
“That’s a definite; I’m a teacher in a public school and that’s a massive part of my identity,” he said. “I can’t just let go of that. I will definitely get back to it as soon as I can.”
Teaching young adults at Brooks is something that gives him much hope for the future, he added.
“Working with teenagers, I’m just lucky to have that job,” said Reghelin. “You see how the ideas they have are incredible. You see how compassionate, caring and loving they can be. You just think ‘Okay, we’re in good hands here. It’s going to be just fine.’”
