Windham Community Rally Arounds Father Injured In Biking Accident

WINDHAM, NH — A GoFundMe.com effort has been created to assist a Windham father and bicyclist who was involved in an accident in late July that has left him paralyzed.

Jim Harvey was biking on the Clyde Pond Trails in Windham on July 17, as he had done a few times a week for many years when his bike stopped and he flew over the handlebars. Windham fire and rescue teams were called to the scene and he was carried off the bike trail and medflighted to a Massachusetts hospital.

Harvey sustained a severe spinal cord injury, leaving him in full paralysis from the chest down, according to his family.

A GoFundMe.com effort, Blazing New Trails, was set up to assist Harvey and his family pay for medical bills. A $250,000 goal was posted as a goal. During the first 48 hours of the effort, more than $177,000 was raised from around 960 donors.

“Jim is currently in the surgical ICU and has undergone multiple treatments and surgery to stabilize his condition,” the organizer posted online. “He has some arm and wrist movement, but we are being told not to expect use of hands or anything below his upper chest. We are waiting for the swelling to go down to see where he lands and are hoping for a miracle. The plan after his ICU stay is to move him to a rehabilitation center where he will live full-time for an estimated 3 months trying to regain as much function, independence, and strength as his injury will allow before returning home.”

Windham fire posted a video of the medflight on Facebook.

Other firefighters offering mutual aid included Salem and Londonderry while Windham police also offered assistance during the rescue.

For more information about the effort, visit the “Blazing New Trails: Help Jim Harvey defy the odds” effort, linked here.

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