Stan Gomboc wants to come home, and his long-time Orillia friend, Paul Hamel, is determined to help make that happen.
Gomboc, who along with his wife Marian owns the Gomboc's Jumbo Hot Dog food truck near the Anne Street Beer Store in Barrie has been recovering at Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital (OSMH) since February, after suffering a massive stroke while vacationing in Cuba one week into a three-week trip.
After being taken from their resort to a nearby hospital by ambulance, Gomboc spent another week in hospital before doctors deemed his health stable enough to travel back home to Canada.
Despite having taken out additional health insurance before leaving on the trip, Marian said back in March that she found herself fighting with the insurance company to get her husband home.
Upon arriving in Canada, he was initially taken by ambulance to a hospital in Etobicoke, but was then transferred to OSMH, where he has been recovering since.
Now, more than four months into his recovery, the Washago man is determined to continue on that road to recovery from the comfort of his home — but that comes with some pretty high costs, Hamel explained.
To help cover some of those costs — which would include specific medical equipment such as a hospital bed, wheelchairs, a ramp, a private personal support worker and rehabilitation — Hamel has created a GoFundMe in the hopes of easing some of the financial pressure for the couple.
“He’s coming back. He is able to talk a little bit, but he wants to go home. He’s verbalized that and he just can’t continue to sit in the hospital bed,” Hamel said. “(Home) is just a better environment for him.”
Hamel called his friend a “unique” individual who has always been there to lend a helping hand, which is why he felt compelled to return the favour however he could. He’s set a fundraising goal of $20,000.
“We are just hoping for some help with some donations so that we can get Stan back home and get him a little bit of a better life than what he has now.”
The popular food truck reopened to customers in April (it closes for the winter months) and while Marian does "pop in" when she can, the couple's children have been running the business while she's been keeping her husband company and preparing things for getting him home, noted Hamel.
