I Would Take You Home.* –a true story, as told to Anna Cooke H
e remembers handing the keys to the girl he had only just begun dating, entrusting her with his new BMW.
The next thing he remembers is waking up in the passenger seat, with his head pressed to the dash, hearing her voice. “Bruce, we’ve been in an awful accident. We need to get out of the car. Now.” As he tried to sit upright and strug- gled to breathe, he lost consciousness again. It was 1988, and 28-year-old, Bruce
Famiglio had his whole life laid out in front of him. Living in Chester County, a rural part of Pennsylvania, he had plenty of friends, a good job and was already participating in fundrais- ing events to help give back to the communi- ty. But that fateful day back in late 1988 would change his life forever. To this day, there are scars, both physical and emotional. After four weeks in ICU, he finally
awoke with hardly any recollection of the accident that almost killed him. He would spend another four weeks in the hospital. Kelly, the nurse who tended to Bruce during his stay in ICU, asked him an odd question one day, while he was still in the hospital. “She asked me if I’d ever had a dog,” Bruce said. “I told her no, and asked her why she wanted to know. She told me that several times while I was unconscious, I said, ‘I don’t want to die. I’ve never had a dog.’” Bruce's mother insisted that he move
back home with her so that she could take care of him while he recovered. A few months later, Bruce felt strong enough to consider getting that dog he never had. “The shelter was located between my own home and mom’s. And over the years, I had always passed by it, never really realizing it was actually there,” said Bruce. So, he made a point of visiting the shel-
ter in the hopes of finding a dog. Bruce knew he wanted a Golden Retriever, but there wasn’t one at the shelter. (Continued on following page.)
g
Ode to a dog. Dewey Famiglio. *A line from the song Ripple, by Grateful Dead. Photograph, courtesy of Bruce Famiglio.
If I Knew the Way,
www.TheNewBarker.com
Summer ~ 2013 THE NEW BARKER 53
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