By Nate Jones
Staff Writer
Nearly 14 years ago, Craig Hammond, a father and carpenter, suddenly fell, “twitching uncontrollably” to the floor of his South Portland home. His wife, Kerry Hammond, immediately called the police and her mother-in-law, Claire Hammond.
“It was terrible,” Claire Hammond said. “None of us knew what was happening.”
Doctors confirmed Craig Hammond had experienced a seizure caused by a slow growing inoperable brain tumor. He lost the use of his left arm and hand as a result of the seizure, but continued to work as a successful carpenter for 12 years.
“I don’t know how he did it, but he worked right up until the end,” Claire Hammond said.
Doctors said he would no longer be able to have children, but by the time he died at the age of 42 in October, 2006, he had three sons: Benjamin Hammond now 16, and two born after his first seizure: Matthew Hammond now 11 and Jeremiah Hammond, now 8.
“Craig was the glue that held us all together,” Claire Hammond said of her son.
Craig Hammond’s sister, Jennifer Gobeille – a nurse living with a family of her own in Oregon – was the family’s “go-to” person during her brother’s illness.
“She became a real medical resource,” Claire Hammond said. “We called her up whenever we had questions about what was going on. She was the rock for all of us.”
Claire Hammond said faith also played a large role in her family coping with the sickness brought on by her son’s tumor.
“He believed he was going to heaven, he was going to be with God,” she said. “He was such a positive believer, he knew he’d be OK and stayed positive. When he died he looked like a 20-year-old young man. He got us through it.”
Claire Hammond said her son’s optimism was contagious; he helped her find the humor in her own injuries sustained in a serious car accident five years ago.
“I lost the use of my left arm and hand, which was the same thing that Craig had lost,” she said. “We would both be struggling to do something and just killing ourselves laughing about it. It helped to laugh.”
Most of Craig Hammond’s family, including his wife and their three sons are planning to participate in the first annual “Rise Up” 5K run or walk on Aug. 9. Gobeille – a seasoned marathon runner – is organizing the event from her home in Oregon in memory of her brother.
“Once [Gobeille] gets a hold of something, she goes crazy,” Claire Hammond said.
Inspired by other successful fundraisers such as Oregon’s “Heaven Can Wait,” race, which raised more than $100,000 for breast cancer research in its ninth year, Gobeille said she began organizing the “Rise Up” race with hopes it would become an annual event for the South Portland community.
“I thought, ‘How hard can it be?’” she said. “I had always wanted to put on a race, and you don’t hear a lot about brain tumors.”
Gobeille said funds raised through donations and registration fees were originally going to benefit a Brain Tumor Association, although Kerry Hammond thought her husband would have wanted to help in a more direct way.
“We’re going to donate the money to a family that is going through the same thing,” Claire Hammond said. “Having been through it, the financial effect of having the primary provider no longer exist is just astonishing.”
Claire Hammond said all the money raised this year will go to a Gorham family whose primary care provider has been diagnosed with a tumor similar to Craig’s.
Claire Hammond said when her daughter first proposed the “Rise Up” race, she had doubts about how many people would register, but they have already collected nearly $3,000 from both race participants and others who simply wanted to donate, having known Craig Hammond or his family.
“This is where Craig lived his whole life, he was born in this house,” she said, sweeping her hand over tables crammed with family photos. “I knew he was well liked but I had no idea how many people would show their support.”
Funds raised by the race in future years could benefit many families affected by brain tumors, Claire Hammond said.
“Say we got $20,000, we’d look for more than just one family,” she said. “They say money doesn’t cure everything, but it sure can help you get through the tough times.”
While Gobeille said she “would love to be able to give the family $5,000,” for the Hammond family the race is more than just a fundraiser. Claire Hammond said it would be the first time her son, Jason Hammond, had returned to South Portland since his brother’s death.
“This will be a healing time for all of us,” she said.
Claire Hammond, who moved to South Portland after graduating high school in 1959, said she recently made the decision to sell the home the family grew up in so she could spend more time with her loved ones. Selling the house, however, doesn’t mean she will leave the area and not take an active role in future “Rise Up” races, she said.
“I would love to go to Oregon for just a few months,” she said. “I’m ready.”
The “Rise Up” race will start at 9 a.m. Aug. 9 at 621 Sawyer Street in South Portland and will finish at the same location. Registration forms will be available beginning at 8 a.m.
To register before the race, participants can pick up a form at Drillin Hardware or Angeloni’s in South Portland or by calling Gobeille at 1-541-408-4189 or Claire Hammond at 767-5074. The first 100 registrants will receive a free T-shirt and there will be food, drinks and activities for kids at the finish line.