A group of local youths have rallied together to raise funds to help a friend in need.
Last month, Tsawwassen resident Mitch Lepore and a group of friends were on a weekend camping trip on Galiano Island. While hiking around the island on July 21, Lepore slipped and fell of a cliff. He suffered a major head injury and had to be air lifted to Victoria General Hospital, said friend Brennan Phillips.
He was in a coma for eight days before waking up with a severe brain injury.
"Since then he's been making huge strides in recovery," Phillips said.
Lepore, a South Delta Secondary grad who just completed his first year at the University of Calgary this past spring, was recently moved from Victoria General Hospital to the G.F. Strong Rehabilitation Centre in Vancouver where he will continue his recov-ery.
Phillips, friends Emily Hirst and Emma Siegmund, and others, are now raising funds to help Lepore's family with anything they need as he works on recovery.
They are selling bracelets inscribed with "in bocca lupo" - an Italian saying for good luck that Lepore has as a tattoo - for a minimum $5 donation.
The group has also organized a fundraising dinner and silent auction at the Beach Grove Golf on Aug.
31. The event starts at 5 p.m. and includes dinner, the auction and a cash bar. Tickets cost $50.
For more info, or to buy a ticket, contact Emily Hirst at 604-306-0075 or [email protected].
To purchase bracelets, call Brennan Phillips at 604-764-7078.
