i’d like you to meet my cousin, alex

alexandra pietropinto is 33 years old and lives in a wheelchair.

after waking from a two-month-long coma caused by a motorcyle accident, this girl — a former dancer — had become a quadriplegic, without the ability to speak or move any part of her body other than her head.

doctors told the family that this was as good as it was going to get for alex: she’d never walk or talk. she was lucky that she’d come out of the coma.

well there are doctors and then there are doctors. Mark Pacchiano, seeing alex’s determined spirit as he worked with her in physical therapy sessions, told her a different story: that she COULD talk and she COULD walk if she worked hard enough.

today, alex talks. with assistance, she is able to stand and take a few steps. she uses her head to work a laptop, and she wants to go back to school.

please watch this video of alex working with her therapist. listen to her say a few words. (i can’t embed it here, it’s proprietary to the news site.) here’s a screenshot of her with Dr. Mark:

after five years in various rehab centers, alex made enough progress to return home, and now lives with her parents on Staten Island.

the house is 100 years old, and not handicapped accessible in any way — the doors too narrow for an electric wheelchair, the bathrooms unreachable without assistance. her dad is a carpenter and has made what changes he can, but more is needed. like, an elevator to get to the second floor, which alex presently has no way of reaching and so is limited to the three small downstairs rooms.

Dr. Mark Pacchiano, in conjunction with the Head On Foundation (Helping Empower Autism and Disorders of Neurological-Systems), has organized a benefit for alex being held on march 12th. the money will be used to make the necessary renovations to the house so that alex can live a bit more independently. you know, like be able to get in and out of the bathroom on her own — something most of us take so for granted that it’s never given a second of thought.

i will be attending the benefit 3/12 and would love to meet some of my readers there if you can make it over to staten island. i know most of you aren’t in the NYC area, but you can make a donation if you like, in any amount. i would be so grateful if you chose to help out in this way. the house needs a LOT of work.

i want alex to see the second floor again, the bedroom she grew up in as a little girl. i want her to be able to take a bathroom break whenever she feels like it, without the need for an escort.

even ten bucks would help. and maybe you could tell your friends about alex, too?

thank you so much.

checks, payable to the Head On Foundation, may be sent to
Dr. Mark Pacchiano
44 Jeanette Avenue
Staten Island, New York 10312

here’s a brief bio of my cousin:

Alexandra (Alex) grew up with a love for dance. She attended the prestigious Mark Twain Junior High School for the Gifted and Talented and studied dance at the Brooklyn Academy of Performing Arts. Alex attended New York University preparing for a career in business management. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in organizational behavior, which is business management and the psychology of the workplace. Alex was offered an incredible opportunity to work as a Household Manager and Estate Manager for Denise Rich, a well known songwriter. Working in this career afforded her the opportunity to travel, enjoy the arts and maintain her love for dance.

On October 12^th, 2003, Alex was involved in a motorcycle accident which sent her flying over 40 feet in the air. She incurred severe damage to her brain and body which placed her in a coma for two months. Alex awoke from the coma as a quadriplegic with inability to move her arms and legs. After multiple surgeries, she became a resident of two rehabilitation facilities. In February of 2008, Alex was able to return home to live with her parents.