Jonesy's Journey

On Feb 27th, 2010 Michael "Jonesy" Jones was critically injured during a rugby tournament in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Jonesy was a standout member of the Albany Knicks Rugby Club, both on and off the pitch, for over 25 years until the accident.

Two months post-accident Jonesy was finally able to breathe on his own, eat and speak. After 4 months of rehab in New Jersey and 7 more closer to home, Jonesy finally returned to his family and remodeled home on February 14, 2011.

Mike has made substantial progress since returning home, regaining some control over his hands. This allows him to use the wheelchair's hand controls, increasing his mobility. He is continuing occupational therapy and is working on grasping and lifting small objects. Progress is slow, but with every gained skill, highly meaningful.

Over the last year friends have been working to literally put Jonesy back on his feet. With mechanical assistance, Mike is able to stand in his home for up to thirty minutes, twice a week. The stand up routine is to help blood circulation in Jonesy's legs but we have also noticed an increase in his ability to use his back muscles.

Mike has also acquired a Wilmington Robotic Exoskeleton (WREX). A device that attaches to the body and uses a set of resistance bands and metal bars to provide artificial strength allowing him to exercise keeping his muscles from atrophying and building strength.

The goal is to continue to help Mike increase his mobility, but the therapy necessary to achieve this accomplishment is neither locally available nor inexpensive. Most recently Mike has contacted the Frazier Rehab Institute in Louisville Kentucky to discuss residential comprehensive rehabilitation services.

By your past contributions and participation in the Michael Jones Open you have helped Jonesy acquire the equipment and services needed to move closer to his objectives.

On behalf of the Michael Jones Special Needs Trust, thank you for your support. With your continued help, we have every expectation that we will be reporting more advances in Jonesy's recovery.