June 27, 2014
MEDICAL UNIVERSITY of SOUTH CAROLINA
Vol. 32, No. 43
Long road to recovery Long road to recovery
Inside Home AwAy from Home
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Local home provides a respite for families of patients.
sTrokes on THe rise
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worth the ride By Dawn Brazell Public Relations
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fter cycling 3,133 miles in 57 days, Steve Pulley dipped his tire into the surf at Sullivan’s Island. It was the end of his cross–country journey that started in San Diego, California on a date celebrating his six years of sobriety. Dipping the tire into the Atlantic Ocean May 18 marked the start of a new chapter in his life as his mind switched gears to his next challenge. Pulley, 26, now logs hours in the classroom at MUSC’s College of Health Professions as
he pursues his dream of becoming a physical therapist. In trying to describe the eight–week cycling journey, Pulley said people wanted to know the hard numbers, such as his mileage and the amount of money raised. Pulley raised $15,000, the majority of the proceeds going to Willingway Foundation that is a primary funding source for the Center for Addiction Recovery at Georgia Southern University, a place that helped Pulley get grounded. His Ride 4 Recovery campaign also raised $3,000 for MUSC’s Center for Drug and Alcohol Programs. The numbers don’t get at the heart of the trip, though. For Pulley, it was the faces
and the stories along the way and the long stretches he had on the road to reflect on those. People such as the man he encountered the first night of his trip. It was someone he met through an online hosting site for touring cyclists. The man had spent 10 years in prison and had been nine years clean and sober. He had met his wife through the ministry, and he was a pastor at a facility that housed 50 men. “I went there to speak the first night. I don’t believe it to be random, and that was day one,” Pulley said of how many such encounters happened on his journey.
See Recovery on page 6
Research study points to jump in stroke hospitalizations among some black patients. 5 Meet Peggy 8 Residents 11 Classifieds T H e C ATA ly s T online http://www. musc.edu/ catalyst