[TheForge] ABANA Member Needs Your Help

Thu Jan 29 22:47:01 2004

  January 19, 2004
ABANA Member Needs Your Help!
Ohio Village Blacksmith Burned in House Fire

On Sunday morning, December 14, 2003, former Ohio Village Blacksmith, Paul
and Sandy Ailing awoke to find their home ablaze. Paul was severely burned
in the fire and is currently in critical condition at the OSU Surgical
Intensive Care Unit(SICU) in Columbus, Ohio. Paul sustained third degree
burns to his right hand, arm and shoulder, his left arm and face. On
Tuesday, December 16th, Paul underwent 6 hours of surgery and skin grafts.

As of January 6, 2004 Paul has had six skin grafts to try and repair damage
to his body. Their house is a near total loss, and they lost all their
possessions and beloved pets. At this time, the prospect of Paul returning
to blacksmithing is questionable due to the nature and severity of his
injuries.

Paul had worked at Ohio Village, Columbus, Ohio as both a volunteer and
employee for nearly 23 years. In February of 2002 the Ohio Historical
Society ended the Ohio Village Crafts Program where Paul was the "Village
Blacksmith". As a result, Paul was left without any health insurance or
meaningful job. Paul is a well known and respected historical collector,
Civil War and military re-enactor, blacksmith, member of Southern Ohio Forge
and Anvil (S.O.F.A.),Artist Blacksmiths Association of North
America(ABANA)and was a familiar face at Outdoor Markets and Military Shows
around the country.Paul is a walking expert on militaria, blacksmithing and
history in general. The loss of his research library and rare books
compounds this already severe blow.

A medical fund account has been graciously set up by National City Bank of
Columbus, Ohio to assist in collecting donations for Paul's expenses.
National City has waived all service charges associated with the account.As
a result, 100% of the monies will go to Paul and his wife Sandy to help them
cope with unimaginable medical expenses that already exceeded $100,000.

Donations may be made at any National City Bank branch or mailed to:

National City Bank
% The Paul Ailing Medical Fund
2941 Olentangy River Rd.
Columbus, OH 43202
(614) 261-3530

Paul and Sandy need our help. Let us show our support for this fine
craftsman and his wife in their hour of need.Thank you.

For an update and article about Paul please visit:
http://ee.dispatch.com/Repository/ml.asp?Issue=TCD/2004/01/16&ID=Ar01904&Mode=HTML&Locale=english-skin-custom

As of January 20th it looks like he will be in the hospital for at least
another week. Cards can be sent to:

Paul Ailing
c/o OSU Medical Center
Dodd Hall-Room 4149A
480 W. 9th Street
Columbus, OH 43210

You can also mail cards to:

Paul Ailing
c/o Michael Lea
2109 Summit St.
Columbus, OH 43201
(614) 291-4757
[email protected]

Thanks!
Mike Lea

http://www.abana.org/cgi-bin/whatsnew/wnnews.cgi?v=news&c=Latest_News&id=0119104124734