Online Figure Skating Prayer Chain

Absent: Elvis Stojko, Shae-Lynn Bourne, Victor Kraatz, Jean-François Hébert

March 24th, 1999

Please pray for me. I am 37 and a new daddy. I have been diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Please pray for my complete healing. Thank you and God Bless...Greg K

Dec. 21st, 1999
Please pray for the following Canadian skaters as they are to compete at Canadians next month in Calgary AB, Elvis Stojko, Jeff Langdon, Jeff Buttle, Ravi Walia, Ben Ferriera, Susan Humphry, Jennifer Robinson, Kristy Sargeant/Kris Wirtz, Jamie Salé/David Pelletier, Emanuel Sandhu, Angela Derochie, Shae-Lynn Bourne, Victor Kraatz and all the junior and novice level skaters too. Don't forget to pray for the judges, coaches, choreographers and the security staff at Canadians too. I pray everyone has a fun time and the no one gets injured or sick.

At Bank of Montreal Central Divisionals while I was on duty, I saw how badly Michelle Leigh's leg was. Please pray tht her leg heals up correctly and that she'll be coaching on the ice soon.

The following is a very serious prayer request and I'd apreciate if you kept this US coach in your prayers daily.
I went in to my rink this morning for an early ice dancing lesson with a Christmas gift for my teacher. I found out at the front desk that my teacher had a very serious accident on Saturday and was near death. His name is Rick Berg, 41 years old. He is catholic, but I don't think he knows Christ as his personal saviour.

Early on Saturday morning he was driving to a rink for a lesson. He must have been distracted and slammed his little car into the back of a tractor-trailer. The car broke the safety bar at the back of the truck and then went UNDER an axle. He was taken by helicopter to a trauma center hospital in Newark, New Jersey. All his body organs are fine, but he has massive head injuries. He lost his right eye, fractured the skull and bones in his face and is paralyzed on the left side of his body. As you can imagine, there is talk of brain damage, etc. The doctors did not expect him to live through Saturday night, but he has managed to hang on. He can squeeze his wife's hand, and now the doctors feel confident enough to due surgery tomorrow (Wednesday). They are going to try to put his face back together and relieve the swelling in his brain - about a 12 hour operation. The thing that saved him was that his skull was so fractured. The blood came out instead of collecting in his skull and killing him.

When the doctors talk brain damage, they say the part that was injured is a part of the brain we don't use too much. But I don't know if I buy that. I don't know if he'll ever be the same again.

Rick has been an international ice dancer for many years with several medals. He currently has a dance team going to the United States Figure Skating Championships in January or February. He was a kind and gentle teacher for all ages (including adult-learner dummies like me) and even taught skating to the mentally retarded.

Thank you again,

Sincerely,

Colleen Mitchell

Here's an update on Rick Berg. 
He's a miracle.  

He survived the infection he had the first week after surgery.  It was
not an infection in the brain, thankfully, and was treated with
antibiotics.  The fever he had was as high as 105.  Last week he had
additional surgery to set a broken ankle and wrist and then was moved
to a regular hospital floor.  Although not fully conscious, he has his
good eye open  seeming to know his visitors and can squeeze their hand.
He can nod his head in agreement with something that's said to him.  Pretty
incredible.  

He still can't talk yet so we don't know about how much he can see, if
anything.  He still has a long way to go.  Brain injuries take a long
time to heal, and then require rehab.

Please continue to have him in your prayers.

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