Buffalo, New York, is known as the “city of good neighbors.” With more than 50 inches of snow from a blizzard, the rest of the world is getting to see how they got their name.
Sha’Kyra Aughtry’s reluctant emotional plea went viral on Facebook. Aughtry went live on the platform and said that she heard someone outside calling for help, so she sent her boyfriend outside to find out who needed help. It turned out to be Joey White, a 64-year-old man with developmental disabilities who was stuck in the cold snow. Aughtry’s boyfriend helped him get out and carried him into the house.
White was so cold that they had to use a hair dryer to melt the ice that was stuck to his pants. The man’s socks and the bags he was carrying, which were stuck to his hands, also had to be cut off. White was in a bad spot, and Aughtry, who had three kids and was getting ready for Christmas, was desperate.
During the live video, the woman said,
I’ve called the National Guard. I’ve called 911. I’ve called everybody – they just keep telling me I’m on a list. I don’t want to be on a list. I don’t care about nothing else. This man is not about to die over here.
She could see that he needed help right away, but things were so bad that no one came to help. A source says that at least 31 people have died in the state because of the winter storm.
Aughtry realized that no one was going to help her soon. The next day, after FaceTiming with a doctor who told her how bad White’s condition was, she tried one last thing. During the two days she took care of Joey, she didn’t see her kids until a friend walked them home on Christmas Eve. Aughtry said that White had the mind of a 10-year-old, but he could remember his sister’s phone number and the number for his job.
The kind person called White’s sister to let her know that White was safe at her house and that she was trying to help him. White was trying to get home from work when he got stuck in the storm, according to Sweet Buffalo. Aughtry, according to White’s sister, saved her brother’s life.
After seeing how bad the man’s frostbite was on the live Facebook video, several people offered to help him get to the hospital. Aughtry told them that the doctor on the video call told them he could lose his fingers or even die if he didn’t get treatment right away. White asked innocently if he was going to die because he could hear the frustration and desperation in her voice. Aughtry gave him his word that he wouldn’t.
Within a short time, someone who had seen Aughtry’s video came by with a snow plow to clear a path, and someone else came by with a pickup truck to take White away. White was both physically and mentally weak, so his temporary caretaker insisted on riding with him to the hospital to make sure he got there safely. Because White was in such bad shape, the men who came to help had to carry him to the hospital.
White got the care he needed, and he is now being treated for fourth-degree frostbite in the ICU at ECMC Hospital. As a thank you for saving White’s life, the theater where White works, North Park Theatre, set up a GoFundMe page for Aughtry that has raised more than $100,000. One was set up for White, too. Buffalo is a city where everyone gets along.
If you want to wish Joey well while he gets better, you can do so here:
Joe White
ECMC462 Grider Street Buffalo, NY 14215
Room #1956
Here is where you can send greeting cards to Sha’Kyra and her family:
Sha’Kyra Aughtry
P.O. Box 348
West Seneca, NY 14224
