Joe Borris, 20, with his girlfriend Olivia Litchfield at the Jan. 5 fundraiser held in Flatbush in his honour. The community raised more than $45,000 for Borris who is now partially paralyzed following an Oct. 20 accident.
For Flatbush’s Joe Borris and his family, the evening of Jan. 5 will be one they will always remember fondly.
That was the night the community gathered at the Flatbush Complex to raise funds to help with the various expenses the 20 year old faces following an Oct. 20 accident that left him partially paralyzed — hopefully only temporarily.
Set in motion by Lindsey Jimmo, momentum quickly picked up for the Joe “Matthew” Borris Fundraiser and the community showed overwhelming support.
“We had 350 tickets, the maximum for the hall. We sold out and could have sold many more,” said Jimmo.
The Flatbush Fire Hall, where Joe was a firefighter and his father Dan is a captain, put together a calendar and that item alone raised $5,235.
“With that included, our total amount raised will be over $45,000,” Jimmo said.
“They’re an amazing, wonderful family who have touched people’s lives all over the province. I had donations coming from all over the province from people who contacted me to help, get tickets, or put in donations. It’s been just wonderful.”
The food, hall, music, face painting, dozens of silent and live auction items and catering were all donated to the cause.
A list of the major sponsors is included in a thank-you ad on Page 9 of this week’s Westlock News. Meanwhile the highest bidder for the live and silent auction was Raymond Marquette and family.
Joe’s family — Dan, mother Nicole and siblings Cody, Riley, Rebecca and Blake — were able to bring him home on a special pass so he could take part in the event.
When he was wheeled in following the meal he received a standing ovation.
“I’d like to thank everyone for coming tonight and making this deal possible,” said Cody, speaking on behalf of the family. “I can’t begin to thank everyone individually, but thank you guys from the bottom of my family’s heart, this really means a lot to us.”
Joe, who works on the rigs and farms part time back home, also spoke and explained what happened.
“I fell out of a tree and I broke my neck — my C5 and 6, so you’ll hear me making jokes about being a cripple and what not just to have some fun with it. Why not? I’m very proud and happy with my community support, it’s pretty nice.”
He noted his current condition is tough, but he’s fighting through.
“It sucks. It ain’t fun. But I’m very proud (of the community). Thank you very much.”
Nicole also sent a message of thanks to the community and Jimmo.
“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever. (Psalm 118:1) Joe worked hard and with the support of his family he was granted an overnight pass on Saturday. What joy it brought Joe!
“Thanks to the strength of his father and brothers we were able to transfer Joe safely into our vehicle which was loaded down with all the equipment we would need.
“Huge thanks to the McCotters for lending us their wheelchair accessible home. And Rebecca, Olivia (Litchfield, Joe’s girlfriend) and I attended to his care needs.
“We were so thankful to be able to attend the amazing community fundraiser for a bit as well. How overwhelming it was to see so many gathered to support us. I very rarely am speechless, but that night I struggled to find words to express my feelings … I still do.
“We are so grateful to everyone, so humbled by the outpouring of love and so thankful for our community family! Words are inadequate to express our heartfelt feelings, but the tears of joy we shared there and later in the evening as we reminisced and still today are expressions of our gratitude.
“Thank you to everyone for the support and prayers throughout this journey. Joe started his full schedule of therapies and classes today (Jan. 7). We continue to pray for a complete healing and wisdom for his care team in their treatment strategies.
“He has requested some time without his family so tonight until Thursday he will be without one of us present. He is rejuvenated after his pass and wants to focus on his healing. Right now we are specifically praying for full use — feeling and movement of his fingers and wrists and continued strengthening of his lungs and complete feeling in his chest. Please unite your prayers with ours! God bless!”
Those who purchased tickets for the event would have noticed a scripture verse at the top that reads: “Those Who Hope In The LORD Will Renew Their Strength ... They Will Walk and Not Be Faint.” (Isaiah 40:30-31). The scripture was spotted by Nicole on one of the cleaning carts when Joe was first in ICU one night when she stayed with him.
“It was about three in the morning and I was in the waiting room. I didn’t have my Bible so I was trying to search the Internet for words of comfort from God, rather unsuccessfully I might add as I am iPhone challenged,” Nicole wrote in an e-mail.
“I went down for a smoke and there was a cleaning crew working and on the cleaning cart was a scripture verse so I asked what it was. The janitor told me it was his favorite verse in the Bible that reminds us of God’s loving protection.
“When I came back in he stopped me and asked why I wanted to know. I told him my son was in the hospital and I was seeking comfort. He asked my son’s name and I said Joe. He answered, ‘Oh Joe is going to be OK!’ He was so confident that I was immediately reassured. He just seemed to know.”
She added this is God’s reminder of his plans for Joe.
“Have a very blessed day confident of God’s loving protection always! Thank you so very much for your prayers, and support.
“We continue to ask for prayers for moving to the Glenrose quickly. May God provide a room for Joe as soon as he is ready to go. Amen!”
Meanwhile a GoFundMe campaign started for Joe in November has surpassed its initial $20,000 goal, with a tally of $30,570 as of Jan. 11. More information on it can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/joe-borris-hope-help-amp-prayers.
