Positivity: Man Meets His Rescuers
He didn’t get to meet them when they did the rescuing:
Meeting the men that saved his life
Man from ice fishing accident expresses gratitude at fundraiserThe Reporter Staff July 23, 2006
MAYVILLE — When Dwayne Langsdorf tells a joke these days, it’s not just to be funny. It’s to help improve memory skills he lost as a result of a nearly fatal ice fishing accident in January.
“As a personal effort to improve my memory, I try to remember jokes,” said Langsdorf, 45. “At first, my memory was poor, but now I can remember detailed jokes.”
One thing Langsdorf doesn’t joke about is the fact that he’s lucky to be alive. He suffered a massive head injury after falling Jan. 20 while ice fishing on Fox Lake. Although he doesn’t remember details of the accident, he’s been told that two young men, Bradly Vetter of Adell and Jon Boedeker of Kewaskum, heard him drop his ice auger and came to his aid.
In the midst of a snowstorm, the men called 911 and took Langsdorf to a nearby tavern and restaurant. He was first taken by ambulance to Waupun Memorial Hospital, and a short time later was taken via ambulance to Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital in Milwaukee.
The blow to Langsdorf’s head from the ice caused a large wound and a blood clot on his brain. Surgeons cut open a large portion of Langsdorf’s skull to relieve the pressure the clot had put on his brain. He has been recovering well with the help of therapists since being released from the hospital two months after the accident.
“It’s been a tailspin,” Langsdorf said of the past year. “Everything has come back to me with the help of therapy.”
Langsdorf said he has no memory problems anymore but is still receiving therapy related to lost peripheral vision in one eye. He regains his sense of humor when talking about his recovery.
“Now I have X-ray vision and I’m psychic, so it was a good trade-off,” he joked.
Langsdorf turned serious again when talking about everyone who has aided in his rescue and recovery over the past several months.
“I’m eternally grateful to the two men who saved me,” he said. “I thank all my family and friends for helping me through this, and I give a lot of credit to the surgeons at Froedtert and the therapists at Columbia (Hospital in Milwaukee).”
He was able to express his gratitude during a fundraiser held July 15 in Mayville when he met the two men who rescued him. Langsdorf’s wife, Jacquie, described meeting the men as “very emotional.”
“How do you ever begin to thank someone for that?” Jacquie said. “There’s no words for it.”
