Community Bands Together to Support Chester Marine's 'New Normal'

At an early age, Nick Taylor has learned the biggest fight of his life will happen away from the battlefield.

The 21-year-old Marine and Chester resident graduated Mendham High School before attending Rutgers University for a year. He later realized his career path was better suited to be clad in fatigues, and set off for Parris Island, South Carolina in May 2014.

He graduated in August 2014, then moved on to the School of Infantry at Camp Geiger in North Carolina for two months before graduating in November 2014 and becoming a Marine.

Taylor moved to the Twenty-Nine Palms Marine base in California to continue his new life when tragedy struck.

According to a GoFundMe page set up by Taylor’s family, just three weeks after resuming his California training, the Chester native was in a major car crash with fellow Marines.

As a result of the rollover crash, Taylor’s injuries led him to be paralyzed from the waist down. Those injuries included a broken sternum, multiple broken ribs, a ruptured spleen, a broken hand, and a complete crush to his T4/T5 vertebra, the fundraising page said.

Taylor returned to New Jersey in mid-December to continue rehabilitation at Kessler Rehabilitation Center in Chester. He underwent another surgery in February to rectify the original spinal surgery that took place after the crash.

Taylor was able to spend a week at his parent’s home in March before returning for further rehabilitation.

“Although Nick has the support of the entire Marine Corp behind him, as well as wonderful insurance, he and his family still have a lot of out-of-pocket expenses,” said the GoFundMe page. “There is a lot of work underway to make our house a home for him and his “new normal” life. Expenses will include medical equipment, ADA home improvements, and car modifications.”

Taylor is expecting to return to college, the page said.

In less than three weeks the fundraising site has brought in $13,973 for Taylor’s expenses, raised by 110 donors. The family’s goal was set at $15,000, but that number may be exceeded.

To find out more about Taylor and his journey, and how to donate, check out the GoFundMe page here.

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