Jason Wuestewald
Foundation Recipient
Jason Wuestewald
Jason’
s Story
In 2004 Jason Wuestewald decided to go into business for himself, so he started JW
Roofing in Yankton, South Dakota. Jason lives in nearby Mission Hills with his wife
Leasha and their daughters. In addition to installing new and replacement roofs,
his business also repaired chimneys and chimney liners, and repaired flat and metal
roofs.
On November 28, 2016 however, he and his wife were involved in a head-on collision!
His wife suffered a broken collarbone, a broken bone in her neck, a bruised lung
and had to have 14 staples in her head. Jason was airlifted to a Sioux Falls hospital
and underwent an emergency 3 ½ hour surgery. There, doctors worked to stabilize
his spinal vertebrae and relieve pressure on his spinal cord. Two days later, he
needed a second surgery, where they fused his vertebrae from C3 to T1. As a result
of the accident, Jason was paralyzed at C6. Jason’s sister-in-law started a Go Fund
Me page to help with both daily living expenses, work needed in the home and
durable medical equipment. The one thing that had eluded them however was a
proper bed to accommodate his condition, one that would not give him a pressure
sore. Leasha joined an online support group for spinal cord injury survivors, and
that is where she found out about the Joseph Groh foundation. The foundation
worked with Jason and Leasha and a rehabilitation hospital to determine which bed and mattress was best suited for Jason’s situation. There were a number of delays
because of the weather and distance to the rehab hospital in Sioux Falls.
Once a proper bed and mattress was identified, the foundation was able to provide
immediate funding thanks to the support of our many donors and supporters.
After everything was delivered, Leasha wrote, “Thank you very much!! We really
appreciate all you are doing for us. I can not thank you enough for your kindness
and patience with us. Your foundation is a blessing to Jason!