Will, Louise, Brian and Jackson Dusinberre in 2019.
The most random of accidents has devastated the family of a recent Conestoga grad.
Will Dusinberre, 22, Class of ’20 and a rising senior at Rider U., suffered life-threatening injuries after a tree fell on him near the Montana/Wyoming border on June 28.
Will was hiking with friends on his day off from his job as a kids’ wrangler at a dude ranch when a gust of wind snapped the trunk of a snag (dead) lodgepole pine. The tree fell 10 feet to the valley below, directly hitting Will’s face while he was lying on his back reading a book.
Will (left) and friends shortly before the pine tree (below) fell on him in the Big Horn Mountains in Montana.
A few friends were injured but Will took the brunt of it. His forehead, skull and orbital bone were severely fractured and his nasal cavity was crushed.
Amazingly, a nurse and a firefighter happened to be hiking nearby and heard cries for help – there was no cell service – and helped stabilize Will. Four rope rescue teams and first responders took more than three hours to hoist Will out of the valley. He was airlifted to a Montana hospital and a few days later, flown to a Level 1 Trauma Center in Denver where his parents, Brian and Louise, remain at his bedside.
While the hearing loss in one ear may be permanent, doctors are hopeful that a series of neurological, plastic and dental surgeries will restore his eye function and his smile. The right side of his face remains paralyzed and Will endures brutal headaches 24/7 but – miraculously, his brain function and speech – and his wondrous singing voice – remain intact. He took his first steps on Monday.
Will performing at the HF Bar Ranch in Buffalo, WY the night before the accident.
EDITOR’S UPDATE: After 45 days out west, the Dusinberres returned to Devon in August. Will is recovering from his fourth surgery – this one was performed by the neuro/ENT team at the Hospital of the Univ. of Pennsylvania to repair a leak in his crushed sinuses. He is able to raise his eyebrow but so far can control no other movement and remains deaf on the affected side. Platinum weights inserted into his eyelids allow him to close his eyes to sleep.
Will playing guitar in his Devon backyard.
Will faces a long, hard road. He’s already had four surgeries – including a bi-frontal craniotomy – with more to come. He is taking the fall semester off from Rider to heal at home and hopes to finish out his film degree during a semester in LA next year.
HEARTFELT THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HAS DONATED TO THE GOFUNDME STARTED BY EXTENDED FAMILY AND FRIENDS TO DEFRAY WILL’S MEDICAL BILLS AND EXPENSES NOT COVERED BY INSURANCE. OUR STORY ALONE RAISED TENS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS – YAY! PLEASE CONSIDER DONATING HERE. WILL’S EXPENSES ARE EXPECTED TO BE ASTRONOMICAL.