Staples Employee Still in Coma After Marlborough Crash; Fund Established

It was an accident that sent three to the hospital, with Mike Mashkevich making the trip by helicopter to UMass Worcester, where he is in a coma recovering.

“He is making progress to getting better but he has so many broken bones," said Jessie Seiders who described Mike as her best friend and who has started a fundraising effort to help the family. "He just started opening his eyes.”

Mike was sitting in the front passenger seat and took the brunt of the accident, she said. The driver and rear seat passenger — who fractured his legs — have been released from the hospital, said Seiders.

Mike is 24 and living in Marlborough. He is an active member of Sudbury River Tennis Club and Wayside Tennis Club, a Senior Programmer Analyst at the Staples Corporate Office in Framingham, Stonehill College alumni and former Stonehill tennis player, according to Seiders.

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Mike's recovery is going to be a long one, she said explaining that he entered surgery on Thursday for his broken wrists  His wrists, arms and elbows are fractured along with other broken bones and internal damage, said Seiders.

“Yesterday was the best I had seen him so far with his eyes open," she said on Thursday explaining that after all the surgeries are complete he is expected to be in rehabilitation for six to 12 months.

The recovery has been trying for not only Mike, but his parents who currently live in Hollywood California, she said. They have been traveling back and forth to be with him as he recovers.

“They’re trying to stay strong but it’s been a pretty long road," said Seiders. “They’re going to be going back and forth. This is going to get expensive because of the airfare."

She has established a fundraising effort to help them with those transportation costs. The family is not only hit with those costs, but Mike's mother taking unpaid time off from her two jobs, said Seiders.

“His mom has just been there 24/7; all the time," she said.

The community has been responsive, already raising nearly $6,000 towards the initial $7,500 goal, said Seiders who also updates a page on Mike's recovery.

“I just wanted to do whatever I could to help," she said. “People in the community are pretty willing to help."

The single-car accident is being investigated by the State Police Accident Reconstruction Team.