ASHVILLE - A benefit will be held tonight with proceeds going to the Lakewood man who was seriously injured in a car crash on Dec. 7 in the city of Jamestown.
Around 7 a.m. that day, 44-year-old Lakewood resident Scott E. Blake was driving west on Fourth Street when his vehicle collided with one driven by a Bemus Point volunteer firefighter who was traveling north on Washington Street.
Blake was first taken to WCA Hospital and flown to the Hamot Medical Center in Erie, Pa., where he is still a patient.
Tonight's benefit is a spaghetti dinner and takes place at the Llama Club in Ashville from 5 to 9 p.m. and the cost is an $8 donation. The donations will help defer the costs associated with Blake's recovery.
One of Blake's children, Stephanie Blake, said her father was transferred out of the intensive care unit this past Friday, but he still has a long road to recovery ahead of him.
She explained that after her aunt called her to break the bad news on Dec. 7, it wasn't long before Blake's friends and family rushed to the hospital to be by his side.
"By the time I got to the hospital everyone that was there to see him had basically taken over the waiting room," Stephanie said. "It's amazing to see how many people love my dad and were seriously concerned about him- he has a really great group of friends. We have a large family to begin with, but including his friends and co-workers, I think there were between 20 and 30 of us in the waiting room for the majority of the day just waiting to hear some good news. Even the nurse on duty was pretty shocked to see how many people were waiting to go in and see him."
Although Blake is doing much better than medics initially thought he would be at this point, there is no indication about whether he will be home in time for Christmas.
The Blake family is from Ashville, with most of them currently living in Lakewood. Mr. Blake is currently living in Lakewood and is one of six children with four of his own. And although his whole family wants him home and in good health as soon as possible, Stephanie said the youngest child, 6-year-old Marilyn, is having an exceptionally hard time without her father by her side.
"Right now we're just trying to keep things as normal as possible for her," Stephanie said. "She misses dad a lot, and she can't wait for him to come back home.
"This has been rough so far, and it's going to take some time for things to get back to normal for all of us. The whole family has really appreciated everyone's support, as well as all of their thoughts and prayers. Even though it will be a long road to recovery, we are all just so thankful that he made it through. We especially want to thank the Llama club for their support in hosting this benefit, and we hope to see a great turn tonight."
