Indiana Fiji fighting for his life
 

Drew Christy, a sophomore member of Phi Gamma Delta at Rose-Hulman, was severely injured in an accident on slick roads coming home after finishing winter quarter finals at Rose. It happened after midnight yesterday (Friday, 2/22) when his car spun on ice. He is in ICU at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. Drew is a chapter officer, two-year football letterman and on the dean's list pursuing a bio-medical degree. His hopes are to become a doctor.

His brothers just left for winter break and are scattered all over the country. Those nearby are keeping a vigil at the hospital with his parents, family, and friends. Please, all Greek readers and posters, say a special prayer that he will wake up and come back to us. His easy grin and generous nature make him beloved by all his Fiji brothers. Again, send prayers, positive thoughts, and good karma his way---the next several hours are critical.

Heartbreaking. So sorry to hear the news. Sending good thoughts and keeping him in my prayers. Please continue to post updates when you can.

Praying for Drew, his family and brothers.

He'll be in my thoughts and prayers.

Same here...thoughts and prayers go out to Drew, his friends and loved ones.

.....Kelly

So sad to hear about.

My heart and prayers go out to Drew, his family, and Brothers.

So sad. Keep us updated on his progress.

Keeping Drew, his family and brothers in our thoughts and prayers!

ZBT

Drew Update
 

A BIG THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO ARE SUPPORTING DREW IN HIS TIME OF NEED! I wanted to give you a little update. After a scare night before last, the ICU put him in one of those beds that rotates (my word for it, but not technically correct). He could not cough and, because of his deep sleeping state, there was a great fear of fluid in his lungs and pneumonia. The bed gently went from side to side, but turned him sideways as well to gently rock the fluid out of his lungs. It was frightening to see, but the thought that it was helping made it OK.

This morning I got a call from one of his pledge brothers that they are taking him out of that rotating bed and moving him into a regular bed. He is still on oxygen, and all hooked up to drainage tubes, but they know that he can breathe on his own because he was doing so when the paramedics arrived. They cannot yet do any tests for motion, but the fact that--36 hours later he is still holding his own--is something to rejoice about.

THANKS AGAIN! If any of you have any knowledge of injuries like this and can post anything to help us understand, it would be appreciated. Keep the good karma coming!

I'm praying for him. I'm glad to hear he is making good progress.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Drew and to all those that care about him.

The thoughts and prayers of the Phi Sigma chapter are with our brother in his time of tragedy.

Good vibe to him, his family and his brothers.

prayers are winging their way as i type. thank you for keeping us informed.

UPDATE FOR DREW (2/25-2/26)
 

AGAIN, THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR PRAYERS AND KIND THOUGHTS.
It is past 72 hours now, and there has been both good and bad. Drew is a fighter and continues to fight, but in a quiet, determined way that none of us can see, but only sense. He has had two emergency surgeries, one to clear out pooled blood from the accident on Friday and one to re-position the drainage tubes in his head. Yet even with all the setbacks, he does makes some progress in terms of his brain returning to normal size, his temperature receding, and his ability to process some normal oxygen.

For those of us who believe in the best Greek life has to offer, I want to tell you that as an advisor, I have never been prouder of a group of guys. Our whole chapter (90+) has surrounded our stricken brother, physically from those near Indy and with prayers and e-mails from those far away. The Rose winter break ends this Friday, and some brothers have changed flights to come back early to see him. Two of his pledge brothers (sophomores now) have not left his side, and continue to give up their vacation time with with families to stay by his side, sometimes sleeping in the hospital lounge and helping his parents out however they can.

It is easy to enjoy Greek life when times are good and eveyone is fine. The true test of a chapter's character is when things are rough, as they are now. My heart truly overflows when I see the brotherly love, devotion, and sacrifice these Fiji men have bestowed on Drew. With your continued prayers and support, and those of his family, friends, and loved ones, surely he will reach down deep into himself and come back to us.

Thanks for the update, PGD, and what a great testament to the young men you advise and their brotherhood. Good thoughts and prayers still going out to and for Drew.

I send my prayers and best wishes to all.

May God bless all of you - Drew, his family, and his friends.

Continued thoughts to Drew and the Rose Fijis. The stories of his pledge brothers giving up their break to stay at the hospital is a wonderful testament to the chapter and the strength of their brotherhood.

here's hoping and praying that he'll pull through. it's beautiful to hear stories of the dedication his brothers are showing.

Its really cool to hear about the way his brothers are handling this. Keep fighting Drew!

For sure.

DREW UPDATE
 

It has been a week now (as of Friday, 2/29) since Drew's accident. He continues to lie in a deep coma, and while he can breathe on his own, he is on a respirator to allow his body to rest. His brain swelling has come down some, and his blood pressure is better. He does, however, have some problems including coughing spells which he cannot control, and he has to be aspirated. Last night they took the tube out of his head that was helping to drain any extra fluid from the swelling because it is down now. He is still in the "rocking" bed that helps to clear his lungs.

All the Rose-Hulman students return to class tomorrow, so we will meet as a chapter to bring everyone up to speed on what is going on. We have tough days ahead as a chapter because we will miss his chapter leadership, sense or humor, and brotherhood. But--if it is God's will--he will slowly come back to us.

For those of you who have posted, THANK YOU SO MUCH. I had a couple PMs to see a picture of Drew. Let me give you two sites. His hospital has a site just for him where his parents post his current update and letters are written--there have been THOUSANDS OF RESPONSES! If you have time, go there and post and let the family know where you heard about Drew and let them know that our Greek community is all behind him. The site is: www.caringbridge.org, click on it and then put drewchristy (one word) in the blank and it will take you to his site.
If you would like to see pictures of him on our Rose-Hulman Fiji website, go to wwwl.rosefiji.com and click on pictures. Then click on the SUPPORTING DREW album. While it does not show up, we have had over 5,000 folks visit our site to get their "Drew fix" as I call it! That is the beauty of photographs; they allow us to reconnect with those we cannot be with at that time.

Just because a week has passed, please don't forget about him. Our brotherhood needs all the prayers and support we can get, as do his family and loved ones. Again, fellow Greeks, thanks for all your support!

Glad to hear he's doing better .

Thank you for the update. The wife of one of my former employees is writing a journal as he goes through Chemo on CaringBridge, as well. This is a wonderful site to stay updated and receive well-wishes from around the world.

Thanks for keeping the updates coming, PGD. Drew is adorable and he's clearly loved dearly by his family, friends and brothers. I hope his signs keep improving and he comes back to you all soon. Continued good thoughts and prayers. Please continue to post updates when you can.

Hopefully they recieved the correspondence from our chapter

I got a chance to visit the Caring Bridge website (thank you for the link PGD-GRAD) and I'm praying for Drew to keep fighting and get better.

thank you for the update. drew remains in our prayers.

I just realized that I hadn't posted my sympathies. Please forgive me - my prayers are with all involved.

May God Bless.

(Thank you for the update)

My thoughts are with you all.

My heart and prayers go out to drew, his family, and the figi Fraternity.