Collecting sports card and comic books was a regular pastime for Georgia resident Timothy Hill, 65. When he wasn’t working as a a General Motors inspector in St. Charles, Missouri, you could sit with him for hours looking over his collections. On the weekends, you may even catch him bowling, fishing or practicing his strokes in art.

Timothy prepared one night for a big work day the next morning, talking to his wife of 40 years, Gwen, who lived at their permanent Georgia residence. Alone and away from home, he settled down and soon fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, Timothy awoke with the strangest feeling. He stumbled when he walked and his right side was weak. He knew something wasn’t right. Timothy grabbed a golf club, used it as a cane to walk to his car and drove himself to the emergency room. Little did he know, he was experiencing a stroke.

It wasn’t long before Timothy had stabilized for rehabilitation. He chose The Rehabilitation Institute of St. Louis (TRISL) and was more than glad to get started, as he worried if he would be able to do all the things he loved again including his art. This gave him the motivation he needed to work hard and give it his all during therapy. 

Timothy appreciated the positivity of his rehabilitation team, who encouraged him to stay positive, too. In fact, the forward-thinking attitude is what convinced him to come to TRISL in the first place instead of going home to Georgia. 

While in therapy, Timothy’s biggest challenge was standing up and being mobile. Once again, his team kept his spirits elevated and even had some fun with bingo night, crafts, patient anniversaries and birthday celebrations – including Timothy’s. He received oil pastels to use in therapy to practice art movements with his left hand since his right hand was limited. The results made quite an impression on his team and staff.

Hard work and commitment to his goals paid off for Timothy when he was able to walk on his own upon leaving the hospital. Another happy ending in the books.