Photo by WINDHAM FIRE DEPARTMENT Windham and Pelham firefighters join the Boston MedFlight crew in wheeling Jim Harvey to the helicopter for transport to the Lahey Hospital following last week's bicycle crash. (Photo by WINDHAM FIRE DEPARTMENT)

WINDHAM – More than 650 donors as of Monday pushed the GoFundMe account for lifelong Windham resident Jim Harvey past the halfway mark of the $250,000 goal, which was set following the bicycle crash that left Harvey paralyzed from the chest down.

The drive for donations, called “Blaze New Trails,” is described on the GoFundMe narrative as “a critical journey” for Harvey, a 39-year-old husband, father, youth coach and staunch community advocate who was flown to the Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington, Massachusetts and admitted to the surgical ICU, according to “friends and family of Jim Harvey,” which is listed as the organizer of the GoFundMe account.

Harvey, a graduate of Bishop Guertin High School in Nashua and a career electrical engineer, has been undergoing a series of surgeries and related treatments to stabilize his condition, the GoFundMe post states. He has “some arm and wrist movement,” but it’s unlikely he’ll regain use of his hands or movement “below his upper chest.”

Harvey sustained “a severe spinal cord injury” that affected the C-6 and C-7 cervical vertebrae, according to the post.

The crash occurred the morning of July 27, while Harvey was engaging in an activity he did “at least a few days a week” — riding his mountain bike on the Clyde Pond trails before going to work.

Photo by WINDHAM FIRE DEPARTMENT Rescuers carry Jim Harvey down the Clyde Pond trail to an awaiting ambulance at the trailhead parking lot following last week's bicycle crash that severely injured Harvey's spinal cord. (Photo by WINDHAM FIRE DEPARTMENT)

On a trail “he had ridden countless times before,” according to the post, “his bike stopped abruptly,” causing Harvey to fly over the handlebars and land on his head.

While he was wearing a helmet, the impact severely injured Harvey’s spinal cord, the post states.

According to a story posted on Manchesterinklink.com, Harvey, unable to move, lay in the woods near the trail for an estimated 90 minutes before another mountain biker rode by and spotted him.

The man called 911, and, according to Windham Fire Chief Tom McPherson, stayed with Harvey until Windham police, firefighters and medical personnel arrived, according to the Manchesterinklink story.

A jogger who happened upon the scene helped out by running down to the trailhead parking lot to meet first responders, McPherson said.

Courtesy photo Alicia Harvey gives her husband, Jim, a kiss as they and their children enjoy a recent hike. Jim Harvey was seriously injured in a bicycle crash last week that left him paralyzed from the chest down. (Courtesy photo)

“She was kind enough to escort rescuers back up the trail to the location of the incident,” he told Manchesterinklink.

McPherson said medical personnel requested a Boston Medflight helicopter to the scene. Shortly after it landed on the Windham High School football field, the ambulance with Harvey aboard arrived and the crews transferred him to the helicopter for transport to Lahey Hospital.

“No donation is too small … any donation will be greatly appreciated and go directly toward Jim’s medical care and supporting his family,” the post states.

“Everyone who knows Jim agrees, that if anyone can come back from this and ‘blaze a new trail’ to defy the odds, it’s him.”

The complete post, and information on how to donate, can be found by going to www.gofundme.com and searching “Blazing New Trails: Help Jim Harvey defy the odds.”

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.

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