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Assault victim brings anti-bullying message

Giants fan Bryan Stow was brutally beaten at Dodgers game in 2011

Beating victim turned anti-bullying advocate Bryan Stow is flanked by sister Erin Collins (left) and speech-language pathologist Brandy Dickinson as he shares his story with Seabury Hall students Friday afternoon in Olinda. -- The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo

OLINDA — Bryan Stow, the California man who sustained severe brain injuries during a brutal beating at Los Angeles Dodger Stadium six years ago, told Seabury Hall students Friday that he “was hurt by adult bullies.”

“Bullies destroyed my life. Bullies hurt my family,” said the 48-year-old who walked slowly with crutches on stage and needed to be helped into a wheelchair before he addressed the crowd. He later walked with a cane. He also needs help getting up from bed, dressing himself and cannot live independently.

The avid San Francisco Giants baseball fan, who wore a Giants jersey to Seabury Hall and on that day he was beaten in Los Angeles, encouraged students not to be bystanders but rather “upstanders” and report bullying when it happens. His plea included not standing around, filming the bullying and contributing to the problem.

“Think of me when you see someone else who may need some help and encouragement,” Stow said during his speech, which lasted more than 30 minutes.

He had students repeat a pledge that they would “treat others with kindness, compassion and respect.”

Bryan Stow walks across the stage of Seabury Hall’s ‘A‘ali‘ikuhonua Creative Arts Center with speech-language pathologist Brandy Dickinson on Friday afternoon. -- The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo

Stow was in Hawaii as part of work with his foundation, giving anti-bullying talks and stopping fan violence in presentations to schools and organizations. This was Stow’s first time to give such a presentation outside his home state of California. He visited Lahaina Intermediate School on Thursday, and was in Kona on the Big Island earlier this week.

“It feels good,” Stow said of speaking to students in Hawaii.

The former paramedic from Santa Cruz, Calif., said this marks his eighth trip to Hawaii. He visited the islands before the brutal beating.

“For one person it changes, it will be worth it,” Stow said after his presentation in Seabury Hall’s ‘A’ali’iku-honua Creative Arts Center.

On March 31, 2011, Stow was beaten by two men at a Los Angeles Dodgers baseball game. He spent months in a coma with artificial life support and in a bed-bound state, according to his foundation’s website. His muscles deteriorated, leaving him weak, rigid and wheelchair bound. But extensive rehabilitation, including physical, occupational and speech therapy, helped Stow speak, read, write, eat, stand and take care of his basic needs.

Stow told the students that he had to relearn all of these basic skills, and showed tear-jerking clips of his struggles to the students, including how hard it was for him to say “I love you” to his family and how his writing looked like that of a young child.

It took him four years, five hospitalizations, numerous surgeries and countless hours of outpatient therapy before Stow could live at home with his parents in Capitola, Calif.

Two men pleaded guilty to the beating. In 2014, Louie Sanchez was sentenced to eight years and Marvin Norwood received four years in prison. More prison time was added for unrelated federal firearms crimes.

Stow won a negligence civil lawsuit against the Los Angeles Dodgers, of which the organization was responsible for only a quarter of the nearly $18 million judgment. The rest was split between Sanchez and Norwood. Stow’s attorney said that the Dodgers failed to provide adequate security at the game.

“He’s really come a long way,” said Stow’s sister Erin Collins, who accompanied him on Maui. Sister Bonnie Bush accompanied Stow while on Hawaii Island.

Collins said prior to the presentation that Stow has greatly progressed. Initially, family members worried that he would never awaken from his coma.

But Stow continues to have trouble with his short-term memory and cannot recall what he had for breakfast that same day, Collins said.

He has to take 24 1/2 pills a day, and swelling in his legs needs to be monitored to prevent blood clots.

Onstage Friday, Stow had some difficulty with his words and was helped by Collins and his therapist. He also read most of his lines from a computer. He joked with the audience about his teenage children and Collins, and his love for the Giants.

Collins said Stow was brought to Seabury Hall because his speech-language pathologist, Brandy Dickinson, is a cousin of Seabury Hall Athletic Director Robert Dougherty.

Seabury Hall senior Tia Hill took a photo with Stow after his presentation.

“I thought it was really moving,” the 17-year-old said. “He really opened my eyes not only to adolescent bullying but adult bulling.”

At the end of his presentation, Stow said: “I don’t want (anyone) to feel sorry for me. I just want people to encourage me. Encouragement and love from people just like you is what has helped me the most.”

For more information, go to bryanstowfoundation.org

* Melissa Tanji can be reached at mtanji@mauinews.com.

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