Page 30 December 2012 Accident changes life of longtime Arcadia worker By Kyle Renick It was a typical Sunday morning for 47-year-old Ranferi Gonzalez, who was driving his sister to work at around 7:54 a.m. before he drove to his own job to begin the day in his seven-day work week, when a minivan hit Gonzalez’s F-150 Ford pickup. The Chevrolet minivan struck the back end of the pickup, causing the truck and its passengers to fl ip, but not before Gonzalez’s left arm was knocked out of his rolled down window. His arm became pinned between the truck and the road as the vehicle slid and scraped against the asphalt before coming to a halt in the intersection of 43rd Avenue and Buckeye Road. The Sept. 23 accident severed Gonzalez’s left arm above his elbow. His sister suffered a blow to the back of the head and bleeding from the nose, but none involved in the accident were injured as severely as Gonzalez. An ambulance arrived and rushed Gonzalez to Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center, where he spent the next four days recovering. He has worked as a landscaper in the Arcadia-Scottsdale area for 30 years, but his life and his plans have come to a screeching halt with the loss of his arm, and now, unable to work, he’s unsure how to move forward. Gonzalez speaks only Spanish, but he explained through his brother how he was feeling. “His plans before the accident were to buy his own house, buy his own car just for going out, and now he’s not able to accomplish those things,” Gonzalez’s brother, Rigoberto, said, translating for Gonzalez. Gonzalez has never been married, but it has been his dream to buy a home for himself and his mother, a dream that has been put on hold due to the pile of hospital bills and lawyer fees. Gonzalez is not allowed to return to work for six months, and until then, he worries about paying all his bills and taking care of his mother, who recently had triple heart bypass surgery. “He still smiles, but we can tell he’s sad. He says he’s OK, he’s all right,” Rigoberto said, beginning to cry. “But we see it in his face.” Rigoberto said that what Gonzalez wants right now is a way to thank his friends and those close to him who have helped him. He has been receiving money Continued on page 32 Isn’t your life cluttered enough? Let us help you simplify. Since 1995 we have made 165 of your neighbors very happy. Don’t you think you deserve the same treatment? 2265 W Desert Cove, Phoenix, AZ 85029 602-274-3211 • www.dshe.net Dennis Sage, Owner and Longtime Arcadia Resident before after 167 480-941-8954 9:30 – 5:30 Monday – Friday • 9:30 – 5:00 Saturday • 5625 East Indian School Road, Phoenix www.oneposhplace.com Visit our Retail Showroom Also offering Award Winning Interior Design by Paige Bailey & Associates, Inc.