Francisco Fernandes Bethel, CT, USA

C5-6, June 2000

On June 17, 2000 I was with my best friend, my wife, when I dove in a pool. I broke my neck instantly and was drowning. My wife saved my life that day by lifting me from the water so that I can breathe. We've been together every minute since - best friends on a quest for a cure. I cannot use my hands or legs, so we work as a team not only with my disability but in life. No one deserves to live this way and I will never give up on a cure for all of us. I currently counsel the newly injured and try any and all experimental therapies.