‘I think God knew


I’m the kind of person who won’t give up.’


Pollock still reports to therapy once a week.


couragement is a possible side effect—the first man to receive a double-hand transplant in the country eventu- ally asked for his hands to be removed. Just six months ago on a frigid morning, Pollock parked at the medical building he’s been enter- ing for more than four years. Tere occupational therapist Jana Poole laid warm towels over his hands. Ten she began stretching a hand backward at the wrist, continu- ing the quest for the fullest possible range of motion. Pollock now


goes for therapy


once a week, for 90 minutes. His strength might be pla- teauing, but even aſter his hands stop getting stronger, he continues to gain function through practice and mastering new ways to do things. He drives, signs his name, peels an egg, cooks and cleans, and operates a snowblower. “Some people would stall out and not continue to try new things,” Poole said. “He has never not tried.”


A faith-altering accident Pollock had been depressed following the accident. His parents had recently joined Good Shepherd and his father invited him to attend. Baker, their pastor, also had visited him in the hospital. Soon Pollock, who hadn’t gone to church regularly since confirmation, was attend- ing Sunday and Wednesday services at Good Shepherd. As his hands have grown stronger, so has his involve-


ment at church. Now he handles the wine chalice dur- ing communion. “Tere are a lot of special people at our church,” he


said. One of those people is Turner,


who was eating a Tanksgiving Day meal with his family when he started thinking about the shortage of donor organs. He pictured people who needed kidneys, wondering if they would see another Tanksgiving. It happened to


Pollock’s hands are strong and he is working on gaining functions.


him again at Christmas. A few


days later, Turner called a local hospital and arranged to make a “Good Samaritan” kidney donation. Te 58-year-old lawyer considers it a blessing that


people can make such a donation or check a box on their driver’s license allowing their organs to be donated if they die in an accident. “It’s another chance at life,” Turner said. “Chris is the


living proof that by someone being generous enough and their family supporting that decision, Chris can have hands again. Tat is amazing and fantastic and miraculous. Te giſt, as you leave this planet, to save someone is just incredible.”


Looking to the future Pollock now attends Harrisburg Area Community Col- lege. At 46 he looks like any other student as he grips a smartphone, his fingers routinely tapping out texts. Once a career mechanic in the Army, then the


National Guard, Pollock also faces the challenge of finding a new career. He had joined the Army right aſter high school because of his mechanical aptitude and preference for working with his hands. While capable, his hands won’t hold up to full-time mechanic work, he said. “I used to use my hands constantly. Now it’s going


to be all thinking,” he said. “I’m the kind of person who wants to be mobile. I can’t sit in a cubicle. Tat’s what’s hard for me to face.” He describes how he used to be—playing the lottery


Author bio: Wenner, an ELCA member, originally wrote about Chris Pollock for www. PennLive.com.


and longing for fast fulfillment. He forever rushed to be “done.” It might have contributed to his accident, he said. He no longer rushes. He enjoys one day at a time, focusing on the doable and the meaningful. A few years ago Pollock started a new “family tradi- tion,” where he and his son run in a Tanksgiving Day turkey trot. Aſter his accident, people told Pol-


lock it happened for a reason. He wasn’t so sure. But he is gratified that people tell him his recovery inspires them. “I think God knew I’m the kind of person who won’t give up,” he said. 


September 2015 13


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