That's OK, gg. I went in knowing they were really reluctant to talk to me, and I just said, "You know, this is hard for me too, because I really don't want to say anything insensitive, I'm just not sure how to go about it." This poor guy went into the hospital dehydrated from a virus, so he was just there to get fluids, and between Friday night and Sunday morning, he was paralyzed from the neck down. He's been that way over a year. Supposedly there is a 95% recovery rate from this disease, but his recovery is taking longer than most.

I just looked him in the eye and let him know what I needed, and he was a lot better about being forthcoming than his wife was. She was so nervous I was there she had a friend there to babysit her! Geeze. All I'm trying to do is get these people some publicity for their fundraiser so they can buy a specially equipped van to get him around. Try to do a good deed and look what ya get. ;-)

Anyway, I really like the idea of a group like you described. I wish there were more "disabled" people who would say that so the rest of us wouldn't be so nervous. I guess it's comparable to asking about a person after a death. My dad died coming up on 6 years ago, and I cry every time somebody asks me about him, and then I launch into about an hour of talking. :-) Talking about him helps me keep his memory alive, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to share those.

And now that I'm getting teary thinking about it, I'm going to shut up. :-) Thank you for the advice, though.

Candy