I am currently employed by StafKings and have the pleasure of working with Carla Rae Sindelar. Carla has been classified comatose to semi-comatose since after having had a car accident 10 years ago.

Carla is in wonderful physical condition due entirely to the devotion and level of care her father; Mr. Sindelar has given her.

He has devoted his time to her on a 24-hour a day basis, and devised a feeding formula that allows her to be completely free of drugs, and on fewer medications than a normal young adult her age.

She requires stomach feeding and care around the clock, but Mr. Sindelar appears to be accomplishing this objective with only four hours of nursing care a day.  He also has to address any complications in her care on a continual basis.

Although Carla is in the best care I have ever witnessed, she does suffer from occasional complications. Currently, we are trying to clear up a bed sore to her ankle, severely contracted arms, legs, and hip areas, and a rash around her "G" tube, Stoma area.

Mr. Sindelar's first priority is to Carla, and somehow continues to endure extreme hardships brought on by the Village of Elmira Heights, "hot- line" calls to agencies, by attorney's, a dire need for sleep, and all with extremely limited nursing care.

If you wonder how I know this, on December 22, 1999 when I arrived at Mr. Sindelar's to care for Carla, there were several trucks and people outside of his residence removing his possessions. I saw items removed from his trailer, and cinder blocks, bricks, pipe and other things from the back of his lot.

A day earlier when entering Mr. Sindelar's home, the phone had been ringing and so I picked it up not knowing Mr. Sindelar just answered it in another room.  The caller spoke in a way that seemed unfriendly so I listened in a few moments.  Mr. Sindelar said he had to get a file and after he picked up the phone again was told "this is what we are going to do." I witnessed the other person say they would begin to remove "stuff" under the stairs, across the driveway, progress to yard, etc and at that point I hung up.

After the conversation ended, Mr. Sindelar was very upset and asked me to quickly write down what I heard while it was still fresh in my mind. He gave me a piece of paper and pen and went in to see Carla. Normally he would have been to bed when a nurse arrived to care for his daughter.

About a week earlier, Mr. Sindelar had shown me two letters from appeals court accepting his appeal and asking the Village to cooperate. Obviously, that was never the intention of the Village as demonstrated by their actions.

That afternoon before I left, he showed me a letter from the court saying the judge was now only allowing him to appealing his "criminal conviction", not his possessions.  He didn't know how he could appeal one without the other. He said that being so tired he probably made a legal error, but still couldn't understand how anyone could separate the two. The letter indicated that two people should be able to negotiate the problem and resolve it. From what I heard on the phone, that was not possible.

Mr. Sindelar showed me five, $100.00 bills a man from Avoca gave him for three old items just days before the Village took his possessions. Sales from things outside gave him money to help offset the expense of caring for his daughter. He would have sold more except he didn't want to remove anything before an auctioneer appraised it.

It's hard to believe anyone could have his or her possessions taken from them in such a way, especially right before Christmas. As a nurse, I see many tragic things, but never anything like that. During my employment here, I've noticed that Mr. Sindelar does everything he can to help people, and wouldn't harm anyone. He tries to honor his obligations, especially in caring for his daughter.  He didn't deserve what was done to him, no one does. Christmas is a time when people are supposed to help others. Now I agree with other nurses why Mr. Sindelar is so frustrated and tired most of the time.

How can anyone fight legal battles, try to protect Carla's and his possessions for her future care, a child who is bedridden and allows him only a maximum of four hours sleep a day at best because he only has nurses attending to Carla for four hours in the morning?

He could really use more nursing care, less legal harassment and everyone will benefit.