Benefit to aid paralyzed pilot
Matthew Posniewski & Family
Money raised will be used to make new home wheelchair accessible
By
Eric Reinagel
Press & Sun-Bulletin
OWEGO -- Since U.S. Navy Lt. Matt Posniewski became paralyzed from the chest down he's been amazed at the outpouring of help from the community.
After all, Posniewski was transferred from Jacksonville, Fla., to work as a test pilot for the Defense Contract Management Agency, stationed at Lockheed Martin Systems Integration-Owego, only six months before his tragic accident in August 2007.
The officer was cutting a tree limb in his backyard when the limb snapped and crashed onto the ladder he was perched on, said his wife, Denise. The 16-foot tumble from the ladder led to a broken neck and spinal cord injuries, she said.
A benefit will be held for Posniewski from noon to 5 p.m. March 16 at the Warner Memorial Hall of the Glenn A. Warner Post 1371, Veterans of Foreign Wars, 207 Main St., Owego. Spaghetti with meatballs and salad will be served, and there will be a 50/50 raffle, silent auctions and a dessert sale. A free-will offering will be taken. Entertainment will include a balloon artist, the band Masterpiece from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. and DJ Unicorn. There also will be a cash bar.
Event organizer Olivia Chin, an Owego resident who has volunteered her business Fun4All's services, said "That's why I love Owego. It never ceases to amaze me when someone's chips are down," said Chin, who mentioned many local businesses helped.
Posniewski, 37, of Crestview Heights, said the money will be used to help pay bills and make a new home he's building -- near his family and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Hospital in the Albany area -- wheelchair accessible.
Posniewski returned home Jan. 19 after spending months in the Boston area struggling through physical therapy at a VA Hospital. He said he's still able to move his arms, but has to use adaptive equipment to have limited use of his hands. He has some strength in his triceps.
Simple things like sitting, however, have taken on a new meaning for Posniewski.
"You don't realize how much you use your abdominal muscles until they're not there," he said.
"I rely on my wife for a lot of basic functions," he said. "You almost feel a like a child again. It's pretty humbling."
Posniewski said his wife has been amazing in caring for him, and his two sons Logan, 6, and Evan, 4, have adapted.
Logan was really bothered seeing his father in a wheelchair, but Evan took the transition in stride.
"He actually told me, 'You can't give me horseyback rides anymore, but you can give us wheelchair rides.'"