Benefit set for Valley native Dan Hickey

A benefit for fourth generation Carson Valley native and former county commissioner Dan Hickey is 5-9 p.m. June 25 in Gardnerville.

The Foothill resident was injured in a skiing accident in January, according to wife Laurie Hickey.

"He came home with two black eyes and a headache, but thought nothing of it - he was wearing a helmet," she said. "By mid-March he was just not himself and by the first of April he was suffering headaches, no appetite and thought it was sinus or the flu."

After three trips to the doctor and the emergency room, a CAT scan revealed two blood clots on the left and right sides of his brain.

After three brain surgeries to remove the clots he began to suffer seizures. Doctors induced what was expected to be a 10-day coma that ended up lasting nearly 30 days.

According to Laurie Hickey, he was in the intensive care unit for 38 days, then the neurological unit for a few days, before he entered rehab.

"Dan can move all body parts, talk and has now regained his great personality, but has lost over 50 percent of his muscle mass," she said. "The recovery is going to be long and slow and require months of rehabilitation."

Hickey started skiing as a youngster. He was one of the seven members who established the Douglas County Ski Club, which he served as a chaperon, instructor and transportation as an adult.

An expert skier, he was a ski instructor for the Dennis Hogan Ski School at Mt. Rose while he attended University of Nevada, Reno.

"This is an example of how freak accidents can happen to anyone - even expert skiers," Laurie Hickey said.

As a young adult he coached Little League, refereed adult basketball and was a Pop Warner referee for many years. He announced the Douglas High School football games for about 20 years and was one of the organizers of the Douglas High School Athletic Boosters Club.

"Dan is a people person with a great personality who always enjoyed a good time and spent countless hours giving to the community, always ready to lend a helping hand to any who needed it," Laurie Hickey said.

The spaghetti dinner and silent auction fundraiser will be at Carson Valley United Methodist Church, 1375 Centerville Lane in Gardnerville. Cost is $15 per person, $25 for a family of four. For tickets and more information contact Shannon Hickey at (775) 315-0697.