Please go visit Brad. Get him out of the house, make him laugh, take him out for lunch, whatever. He's been houseridden for nearly a month and is alone all day long. It's really getting to him and I fear he is getting depressed. His birthday is Sunday. Please call to talk to him or visit him whenever you can.

Weekly Thank You's!

Hey guys!

Lisa here...We wanted to thank all of those who have donated to Brad's recovery fund. The bills are coming in and he has no means of income right now and can't work for some time. Any little help is much appreciated!

Thank you so much for your kind donations:

Brad's Aunt Melinda and Julie (GA)
Mary and David Boggs (TX)
Nancy and Mike Carr (China)

Our new friends in Frisco have really helped out and barely know us and don't know Brad at all. We are so lucky to have met these nice families and are so thankful to them.

Take care everyone! The Cochran Family

Please read...

Hey everyone. April here! Went and saw Brad today for Beth's birthday luncheon over at Bob's. It was great seeing everyone but wanted to let you know that Brad is really needing some company. He's all alone during the day when Bob's at work and no one has been going to see him. He's feeling kind of down. Please please please go visit him during the day if you can find some time. He's in dire need of "things" to play with-he's sick and tired of watching TV. He's got a puzzle he's currently working on but would love some other games to keep his mind occupied and active while he's at home.
Thank you all again for all you have done. Just keep the momentum going!

Weekly Thank You's!

Lisa here...Hey everyone! We wanted to thank the following people for their kind and generous donations:

Karen and David McGaha (GA)
Mary and Barry Cohen (GA)
My Girlie Poker Group in Frisco (TX)
Jen and Joe Opiola (TX)

You all have been so kind to our family and we can't thank you enough. Please continue to keep Brad in your thoughts and prayers. Take care!

Zak here, posting something Dad wrote for the blog...

Brad and I just got back from his first check with Dr. Chitale. Brad was not happy with the ten pages of medical information that the office wanted but the check up went well.

Doctor Chitale was very pleased that the swelling had gone down enough to schedule the follow up surgery.

On November the 11th (Laney's birthday) we will return to Kennestone Hospital to put the skull plates back in place. Brad will be in ICU for about 4 days and with a couple of weeks at home hopefully he will ready to celebrate Thanksgiving with the family. This Thanksgiving will truly be one of "thanks". Brad's right ear is still brothering him but the Dr. said that at this point there is very little that can be done. After the surgery he will go to an ear specialist.

Brad was not happy to learn that he can not drive or return to work until after the first of the year...but I reminded him on his "miracle" to be alive. Sometimes when you are young you forget the "bigger" picture!

Thanks for all the prayers and those who have donated...thank you so very much. The bills have started rolling in and are approaching $200,000.

Sincerely,
Bob

Beth Here...
Went to see Brad yesterday and take him a movie to watch as he is very bored. It was so good to see him out of the hospital and more like his "old" self. We had alot of laughs. Brad is still very anxious to get his skull back in his head and is concerned with the fact that he still can't hear out of his right ear. I tried to encourage him to have patience and to stop using Qtips....but little brothers never listen...haha. Brad was going to see the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie last night with his friends, and was looking forward to that. He gets worn out pretty easily still, but he is getting better everyday. Brad keeps a picture of him after the surgery while he was in the coma on his cell phone. He says that it is a reminder for him. He told me yesterday that he looks at the blog and has gotten cards from people that he has never met. He said that it amazes him that just by word of mouth all these people have heard about him, and it gives him so much encouragement. Thank you to all of you who visit the blog to keep up with him. Please leave comments.

Thank You!

Lisa here...Thank you again to all for thinking of Brad and our family. Brad has told all of us numerous times how unbelievable it is to have so many people thinking of him...people who don't even know him. He is very grateful to all of you.

We received more donations for the Brad Cochran Recovery Fund this week! The family would like to thank the following people for their kind and generous donations:

Earl and BJ Gearhart (GA)
The Luckey Family in Kansas (KS)
Dallas AFC Office (TX)
(Derek's Dallas colleagues got together and collected an unbelievable donation for Brad...thank you so much!)

Derek and I talked to Brad last night and he sounded great! He walked outside for a bit on Monday, up a HUGE hill and around their complex. Great job Brad! Keep it up. We are all so proud of you and love you so much!

It's good to have Brad home!

April here. Tonight is my dad's birthday. We had mom and dad over for dinner and since Brad is home we wanted Bob and him to come over as well. It was so wonderful to have them here. It was how we always celebrate events...with family. I must admit I was like a little kid waiting for Bob and Brad to pull into the driveway...it was the first time I've seen him since he was released! The emotions I had when I saw him get out of the car poured out of me like a water hose. All I could do was grab hold of him, tell him I love him, and say how good it felt to hold him in my arms. Just thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes. It's all so surreal even still. I mean, come on, how can he really be here, talking, laughing, remembering? We all talked about how he's feeling. He said he feels a "little off". He HATES have his skull embeded in his stomach. It's such a wierd feeling for him. He can't hear out of his right ear. He won't be able to drive of work for quite some time and he's worried about getting bored and being unproductive. But we all sat there, laughing, smiling, happy, telling him how thankful we are to even have him here at all.

Wow.....Thanksgiving this year will have the most important meaning ever.

Beth here...
Dad called at 0830 today and said that they were discharging brad from the hospital. This is great news! Brad still has a long way to go in his recovery and the hard part is just beginning. Thank you again to all who have donated to the fund! Thank all of you for your thoughts and prayers.