Lynbrook FD to Raise Money for Kelly Ann Cartmell

While most are preparing for Thanksgiving, thinking about Christmas shopping or getting ready for the upcoming winter season, the members of the 's Emergency Medical Company are getting ready for a Fall Festival Fundraising event on Nov. 20 to support one of their fallen members.

Firefighter/EMT Kelly Ann Cartmell suffered a brain injury as a result of a diabetic incident on April 12, and has been in an upstate rehabilitation hospital with her family hoping to be able to bring her home sometime next year.

Cartmell is a fourth-generation Lynbrook resident and hasresisted any talks of ever moving anywhere else. Cartmell was always involved with community activities and local politics, and joined the Lynbrook Fire Department and the Medical Company in 2004.

During her time with the Medical Company, she served on many committees and was one of their most active members until health issues forced her to cut back on her call hours — but not on her enthusiasm. She chaired the department's fundraising committee and was the driving force behind the annual Valentine's Day flower sale event. Cartmell also served on the department benevolent and service awards committees and always looked out for the needs of others.

With the encouragement of family and friends, Cartmell completed an Associate's Degree at the New York College of Health Professionals, and became licensed as a massage therapist in December 2008. She turned down several job offers in neighboring communities to work at  Hands on Health in Lynbrook, her hometown. She entered in to a new relationship and life was looking good.

During 2009, she took a wonderful vacation to San Francisco with her boyfriend and another trip treating their mothers to a week in Disney World. Life was great heading into 2010, a year that was supposed to start a new life.

On Jan. 13, Cartmell was engaged to David Linzer, also from Lynbrook Medical Company, and they planned for an October wedding. But fate had other plans for them.

As a longtime diabetic, Cartmell worked hard to maintain her blood sugars, which were never under complete control. In February, she developed a foot wound and it prohibited her from working. On March 13, Mother Nature struck during the nor'easter that swept through Lynbrook, sending a large oak tree crashing down on her house, causing severe damage. With support of family and insurance, she had hoped to rebuild and remodel and turn her house into a new home for herself and Linzer.

On April 12, Linzer arrived early at Cartmell's house, as he did every morning for breakfast and to assist her with her foot wound care. It was there that Linzer found her unconscious with a very low blood-sugar level. After a call to 911 that brought their colleagues from the Medical Company, they made an attempt to wake her up. Realizing that something else was happening, they rushed her to South Nassau Communities Hospital in Oceanside. It took almost an hour to stabilize her condition, and then it was discovered that she had gone several hours with very low blood sugars and this had caused a severe brain injury.
 
Cartmell remained in a coma for almost a month, and after awakening continued to not respond to her environment.

On June 2, Cartmell was transferred to Helen Hayes Rehabilitation Hospital in Haverstraw, NY and is making very slow progress. She is awaiting clearance to transfer to another facility near Kingston, NY, where she will enter a comprehensive neurological rehabilitation program that will run for six months to a year.

No matter what the outcome, her family will bring her home when she completes the program or stops showing progress. And while her planned October wedding date has passed, Cartmell and Linzer's family have vowed to care for her and make sure that all her needs are met. Her brothers and sisters of the Medical Company are doing what they can and will be trying to raise funds for future needed home renovations once Cartmell comes home.

Friends say Cartmell's beautiful smile, warm personality and her caring demeanor have been missed by all who know her. Her family continues to hope for a miracle.

The Fall Festival Fundraising event will be held on Saturday, Nov. 20, at the Tally-Ho firehouse on Horton Avenue. The department wished to thank members of Tally-Ho for donating the use of the hall, as well as to the many other contributors to the event. There will be prizes auctioned off as well as a 50/50 raffle.

For further information on tickets and raffles or to make a donation, contact the Emergency Medical Company at (516) 599-5328. Please leave a message and someone will get back to you.

This article was submitted by Steve Grogan of the Lynbrook Fire Department.