Rallying around paralyzed KFC manager

A spaghetti dinner to raise money will be Saturday.

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — The KFC manager paralyzed after being robbed and shot in March may be able to come home at the end of summer.

In the meantime, Joe Kaluza, who turned 43 on Thursday, remains at Cleveland MetroHealth, said his wife, Lisa. He’s still paralyzed from the neck down and on a ventilator but his spirits are good, she said.

Joe was on his way to make a bank deposit for the KFC on South Avenue on March 24 when he became the victim of a crash staged to set him up for a robbery. A man and woman charged in the crime are awaiting trial.

A Joe Kaluza Spaghetti Dinner Benefit will be from 4:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday at St. Matthias Church, Father Snock Center, 2800 Shady Run Road. The dinner is $7 for adults and $4 for children 4 to 12. Those 3 and under eat for free. Take-out dinners will be available. The event will feature a Chinese auction.

Early on, a Joe Kaluza fund was established at Huntington Bank. Donations are still being accepted at any branch.

Lisa Kaluza said the idea for a spaghetti dinner benefit came from KFC but two family friends are doing the planning. She said KFC and everyone else — family, friends and the community — have been very supportive since the shooting.

“He knows about the dinner and said, ‘That’s good,’” Lisa said. “He’s excited about everyone’s help.”

Lisa said she and Sharon Green, assistant manager at KFC, talk at least once a week. “They’ve been treating me wonderful. They always ask if there’s anything we need.”

The help has included a KFC worker cutting grass at the Kaluzas’ South Side home. Joe, his wife said, always cut the grass — he loved to be outside in the summer.

“If all goes well, he’ll come home in August or September,” Lisa said. “There’s a family meeting with the doctors on July 26 for me, his sister and his mom. They’ll probably prepare us for his prognosis, what he will need here at home.”

She said the therapists keep Joe busy all day.

He can’t feed himself but he can eat “regular” food, Lisa said. “He wants all kinds of food — it’s kind of funny. We’ve taken pizza and Chinese food and brought him hamburgers from a Memorial Day cookout,” she said.

The Kaluzas marked their 23rd wedding anniversary in April.

Both their children — Joshua, 21, and Tiffany, 12 — have learning disabilities. Joshua attends the Bev Masco Workshop and Tiffany is in a handicap class at Volney Rogers. She’ll be attending the Leonard Kirtz School Camp Rachel weekdays this summer.

Lisa said her son is coping better than expected but there are still nights when she sits with him and rubs his back until he falls asleep. Saturdays are rough because that was always a family day, with Joe off work, Lisa said.

When asked what the children know about what happened, Lisa said, “Just that Daddy’s sick.”