Densey Cole sat in his wheelchair at Craig Hospital, recalling how his life changed in May, when the Chicago police officer was driving solo to the scene of a robbery.
A car crossed the street median and smashed into his police sport utility vehicle, shoving it into a pole.
As Cole, 38, lay there, neck broken, a young man ran up, stole his wallet and his gun, then threatened to kill him.
The man was later arrested, but Cole isn’t paying attention to all that now.
“I could care less about that dude,” he said. “I’ve let it all go. I’ve even forgotten his name.”
Cole is more concerned about learning to live as a quadriplegic and how to cover the cost of his wife’s stay in Colorado during his recovery.
The Daniels Fund is helping to ease those anxieties with a $100,000 gift to Craig Hospital that will help cover expenses for the families of injured officers receiving care for brain and spinal cord injuries at the Englewood facility.
“It’s a good thing,” Cole said, “because when your family comes out here, they need someplace to stay. Police officers are blue collar; we don’t make a lot of money.”
His wife, Mary, has been at his side most of the time since he arrived in July.
“It’s been amazing,” she said of her husband’s steady progress. “At first, he couldn’t move anything, but now he can move almost everything. He even walked with a walker in the pool yesterday.”
On Saturday, Cole will be honored at the annual convention of the International Association of Police Chiefs in Denver, where police chiefs from major cities across the country will take part in an award presentation that celebrates officers who place their lives on the line to help others.
Cole and his wife will speak Saturday, as will Emily Dewey, wife of Chris Dewey, 26, a Minnesota sheriff’s deputy who was shot in the head in February while investigating a suspected drunken driver.
He suffered traumatic brain injury, and medical complications will keep him at Craig until January.
“Chris has his ups and downs,” said Emily, who put their household goods in storage in Minnesota and has been living in Colorado while her husband is at Craig.
Through her husband’s ordeal, they both have been buoyed by law enforcement families from all over the country, she said.
“As a wife, I always knew there was the possibility that Chris could be injured, but it’s not something you dwell on,” she said. “So when it does happen, it’s still a shock.”
The staff at Craig Hospital has treated about 35 police officers from more than 15 states, spokesman Kenny Hosack said.
Craig provides free family housing for the first 30 days.
“The Daniels money will help families with housing beyond 30 days and also help extended-family members who want to come out to visit or rent a car,” Hosack said.
Cole said his brush with death made him look at life in a new way.
“Life expectancy,” he said. “I fear it’s not going to be what it is for the average white male, so I want to make hay while I’m here. That’s the most difficult thing of all.”
Colleen O’Connor: 303-954-1083 or coconnor@denverpost.com
