Beloved Hudson DPW worker suffers stroke

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Beloved Hudson DPW worker suffers stroke
Hudson resident Hunter Micciche smiles for a photo.

HUDSON – Last summer, Hunter Micciche could be found cleaning up downtown Hudson and mingling with the police officers on duty.

Now, the once active and healthy 24-year-old Hudson resident is in a medically-induced coma.

A few weeks ago, Micciche was spending time at his grandmother’s house when he suffered a stroke.

“He kept texting me ‘help,’” said his mother Madeline Micciche.

Madeline said he was taken to Marlborough Hospital before he was medflighted to Tufts Medical Center in Boston.

According to his father Thomas, the stroke occurred in his son’s brainstem, which is responsible for controlling the body’s automatic functions that are essential to life, such as breathing.

To keep Hunter alive, the doctors placed him in a medically-induced coma on Oct. 3, but Thomas said they don’t know how Hunter will function if he comes out of the coma.

He added that his family has not yet talked with the doctors about when Hunter will be brought out of the coma because they need to stabilize him first.

Thomas noted that the doctors and nursing staff at Tufts have been “great” and that his son “could not be in a better place.”

“They [the doctors] really can’t give us any long-term prognosis of how he is going to be or who he is going to be when he comes out of the medically-induced coma. It’s really frustrating to me and my family,” Thomas said.

He added, “We are going to stay the course. We don’t want to say bye to him in this state.”

DPW: Hunter Micciche is a ‘tremendous worker’

Hunter, who is on the autism spectrum, has a passion for radios and meeting new people.

After graduating from Hudson High School, Hunter attended Assabet Valley Collaborative’s Evolution Program, which is a program to help students transition to adulthood.

Last summer, he landed a job with the Hudson Public Works Department cleaning up downtown Hudson.

Director of Public Works Eric Ryder said he is “very sad” that Hunter is in a coma.

“He is a great kid. He was a tremendous worker for us this summer and we were looking forward to having him back next year,” Ryder said.

Ryder added, “He was just such a friendly kid. All of the staff got along with him well.”

He noted the Department of Public Works hosted a fundraiser for Hunter and “will continue to pray for him.”

According to Thomas, Hunter is a licensed ham radio operator and frequently helped the Hudson Police fix their scanners.

Among the ways the Hudson community has supported Hunter, Madeline said, was that officer Wendy LaFlamme and another officer visited him in the intensive care unit wearing their full uniforms, which she said, “Hunter would have loved.”

“We would like to thank the Hudson Police, the Public Works Department and the Hudson Fire Department because they have all called us and asked us what they can do for us and for him,” Thomas said. “They have been great. The whole town is behind him getting better.”

To contribute to Hunter’s GoFundMe, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/qhz8n-help-hunter-heal.

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