Pinehurst, North Carolina – Hundreds of community members gathered in the kitchen Thursday to raise money for a Moore County firefighter fighting COVID-19.
John Wilson, who works for the Southern Pines, Aberdeen and Pinebluff fire departments, was recently released from the ICU after battling the coronavirus for more than a month.
Wilson, who tested positive for coronavirus on Jan. 7 before spending more than 40 days in the ICU, is moving forward but still has a long way to go.
All money raised during Thursday’s fundraiser at the Pinehurst Surgical Clinic will go directly to Wilson’s family to pay their medical bills.
About 1,000 people showed up to support the Wilson family.
Wilson, who is 6 feet 3 inches and 240 pounds, is affectionately referred to by Southern Pines residents as “Big John.”
His wife, Jessica Wilson, said that aside from high blood pressure, Wilson was a healthy man before he contracted COVID-19. During his stay in the ICU, Wilson suffered blood clots in his lungs. He was heavily sedated for weeks and lost 45 pounds before being released from the ICU on 25 February.
WRAL reporter Bryan Mims contributed to this report.