Event at Bluebird to benefit paralyzed man

Local bands 40% Steve and the Vivid Curve will headline an event at 10 p.m. tonight at The Bluebird to benefit Fort Wayne resident Dustin Smith, who was involved in a diving accident over the summer that left him paralyzed from the chest down.\nEver since the incident, Smith, 26, and his family, including his fiancee and their two children, have been doing all they can to reorganize their lives to accommodate his disability.\nAfter an initially grim hospital diagnosis indicated Smith would never walk or use his hands again, persistent family members sought out Proneuron Biotechnologies, a company pioneering an experimental trial procedure called Procord that offers hope for a partial cure through improved cell technology.\nTrials conducted in Israel and the United States showed Procord resulted in the return of sensation and even some motor skills in about half of the participants, according to the Proneuron Web site. The treatment involves cultivating white blood cells from the patient's arms and injecting them into the spot where the spinal cord damage occurred. Smith, the 20th person ever accepted into the program and only the 12th person to receive the treatment, underwent the procedure in Atlanta and has seen gradual improvement.\n"Feeling's coming back in his left hand, and he has a lot more control over his hand and arm movements than he had before," Smith's sister Tia Tackett said. "When he came back to Fort Wayne, he could even hold his kid."\nTo further its research, Proneuron has donated its procedures at no cost, but now the family is incurring all the other expenses that are the result of this disability, such as unmet medical costs, transportation needs and modification to Smith's home for handicap accessibility.\nSmith's insurance won't supplement much of the related medical costs and rehabilitation needs, refusing to underwrite experimental procedures, said Jenny Tackett, an IU student and a distant relative of Smith's. \nJenny coordinated tonight's benefit, the funds going toward a trust fund in Smith's name.\nWhile Smith's condition has seen progress, setbacks have been demanding on him.\n"He had a tear in his spinal column and so spinal fluid is leaking out into his neck and spinal meningitis has developed," Tia Tacket said. "And it's extremely painful. He goes in and out of falling asleep, so right now he hasn't been able to do much therapy."\nStill, both women said Smith remains hopeful about his recovery.\n"He's kind of a cheerleader for everyone," Tia said. "Everyone else gets discouraged about the accident but he stays positive and brings everyone else up. He wants to continue college for another degree and that's his No. 1 goal, to get full use of his hands and arms so he can, as that just has so much to do with living and practical life."\nTia, also of Fort Wayne, will be in attendance at tonight's event at Bluebird, which will also be highlighted by a dating auction in which members of 40% Steve and the Vivid Curve will participate alongside nearly 40 volunteering men and women, including representatives from ROTC and Phi Kappa Delta. There will also be a raffle, as local businesses have donated $400 worth of gift certificates to the cause. Raffle tickets will be $1 each.\n"That's what makes this different from other benefits -- the fact that it's not put on by an organization," Jenny said. "So many individuals have gone above and beyond, working together to make something happen. "\nAll proceeds will be contributed to a trust fund set up in Smith's name. Anyone wishing to contribute can send donations to the Dustin Smith Trust Fund at People's Federal Savings Bank, 116 W. Mitchell St., Kendallville, IN, 46755.