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The reconstructive surgery for a Texas man who defended a trans woman after she was physically assaulted has been paid for in full through a crowdfunding project. While visiting Barton Springs Pool in Austin, 33-year-old Jarod Adkison came to the defence of a woman after she was targeted by three men who appeared drunk. After finishing a long bike ride around Lady Bird Lake during a weekend in July, Adkison had a brief, friendly conversation with a group of women before going his own way. As he was walking away, he noticed three men begin to hurl transphobic insults towards one of the women, who was trans, before throwing two of the women to the ground. “I tried to step in defensively, to tell the guys to move on,” he said. “One of the guys punched me a couple of times. I wasn’t trying to fight.” One of the attackers struck Adkison in the back of the head, according to the Austin American-Statesman, causing him to fall to the ground and black out. The construction worker was taken to Dell Seton Medical Center where CT scans revealed he sustained a broken jaw and a concussion. Medical examiners found a shard of his jawbone in his ear canal, which was full of blood. Crowdfunding support was ‘overwhelming’ Adkison’s employer, a small construction company, does not offer health insurance and he makes too much to be eligible for Medicaid or other welfare programs. He was forced to take medical leave, despite not receiving sick pay. His parents started a GoFundMe to help pay for reconstructive surgery and expenses while on leave, which raised over $74,000. The amount of support, Adkison says, was “overwhelming,” even though he was against the idea of asking for help. While the money wasn’t enough to pay for the surgery, Dr CJ Langevin at Wellspring Plastic Surgery in Texas offered to perform the jaw repair surgery for just $1,400 — which covered the cost of the surgical suite time. He underwent the procedure, which involved wiring Adkison’s jaw shut so the bone could heal, in August and fully recovered by early October. “He was an amazing patient,” Dr Langevin said. “It was pretty minimal work from my side.” Two individuals – 28-year-old Joshua McKeith Bell and 29-year-old Matthew Robert Villanueva – were charged with aggravated assault in connection with the incident. “I don’t hold any ill will,” Adkison said. “These are young guys, but you can’t go around sucker punching people and putting people in hospital. “Honestly, I think I might have done the right thing … I would have felt awful if I had not helped out.”
