Off the Wire
After suffering from a terrible motorcycle accident, Jack Northup of the Steel Talons is finally back with his family, his friends and his brothers.Photo by Robert "Zook" Zukor
It was a couple days after Memorial Day when I received the text message: "Jack had a bike accident. They airlifted him to Westchester." My heart sank and a huge lump appeared in my throat as I ran up the stairs to break the news to my husband, Jay. Our dear friend Jack Northup had an accident on his motorcycle. He was thrown from his bike after hitting a rut. It sounded serious.
Each day I anxiously checked to see if messages on his condition had come in on my phone and e-mail. Every day, Jay would ask if I had heard anything. I just couldn't imagine losing Jack. He's the guy who always makes me laugh. He's usually the first one to greet us at events and the type of guy who would go out of his way to do anything for you.
Soon, we were happy to hear that Jack was stable enough to have visitors, and his brothers, the Steel Talons MC, gathered together for a road trip to the hospital. Jay and I, of course, joined them. We all met up at the gas station in Harriman, and after hellos and tight hugs, we returned to our vehicles and the convoy headed down Route 17.
We arrived at the trauma center and walked into the lobby as a group, a family. I couldn't help but wonder what the poor guy behind the receptionist's desk thought as he watched us all walk up to the desk, the guys in their colors and all. "We're here to see our brother Jack Northup," one of the members said. "You're all his brothers?" the receptionist said amazed. "Yes, we are," the member said. Nothing was more true than that.
Two by two, we went into the area where Jack was lying, in an induced coma. I became nervous as a few of the guys came out in tears. Yes, bikers have hearts, and sometimes they do break. Finally, it was Jay's and my turn.
As I nervously rounded the corner, I cautiously peeked in and in the dim light, there was Jack, lying motionless in the hospital bed with all sorts of machines and tubes hooked up to him. I went along his bedside, placed my hand on his arm and bent down to his ear. "Jack, it's Donna and Jay Kessler, " I whispered. Well, all of a sudden he started to thrash and one of the finger thingies came off and an alarm started going off. At that point a couple of nurses rushed in to calm him down. One of them scolded me and said, "Please, don't talk to him or touch him." I was taken aback. I told her that this was my friend and I was happy to see he was even alive to begin with. I wanted him to know I was there. Personally, I couldn't have asked for a better response from him.
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It didn't take long for word to spread among the area motorcycle clubs about the accident.
After several weeks in the hospital, Jack returned home to the delight of his friends, family and brothers. He was a little weak and, of course, itching to get back on his bike. But that's going to take a little time. He stressed how thankful and actually how overwhelmed he was by all who supported him and visited him in the hospital. Really? You can't help but love the guy!
In July, the Steel Talons held a benefit party for Jack. Brothers Helping a Brother, it was appropriately named on the flier. The day of the event, clubs from all over the area showed. Each and every one of them embraced Jack tightly and patted him on the back, happy that he was OK. After all, he's their brother.
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No matter which motorcycle club or car club it is in the area, I found that members consider themselves friends and, more importantly, family, and treat each other as such. It's something that you can't help but admire, respect and learn from. For me, it's all about that, and it's something that I enjoy writing about the most and am honored to be among them all.
See you all on the road, including you, Jack.
dkessler@th-record.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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