Girl's best friend

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BY CANDICE NOVITZKE life@chippewa.com
Monday, October 24, 2005 11:01 AM CDT

Jessica McIlquham takes her stuffed dog Regina everywhere she went.

“Just like Regina went with Jessi to her first day of kindergarten, she's been with her everywhere,” said Laura McIlquham, Jessi's mother.

So last weekend, when 16-year-old Jessi went with the Chippewa Falls Senior High School Marching Band to Whitewater for its state competition, she took Regina along.

When the bus Jessi was riding collided with an overturned semi trailer Sunday morning, Jessi was lucky to be alive. As if dealing with her own injuries and the deaths of five people she loved wasn't band enough, she was separated from Regina - a toy that gave her security and reminded her of family. She thought she might not ever see her dog again.

But Jessi's week was just a little brighter after Regina was put back into her arms thanks to some thoughtful people in the community.

Good as new

Following Sunday's accident, everyone looked around the McIlquham house for Regina, hoping that Jessi hadn't taken the stuffed dog along for the trip to Whitewater.

“We hoped we'd find her there, but she wasn't,” Jessi's aunt Sharon McIlquham said. “We knew Regina was on the bus with Jessi. We thought she was gone forever.”

Sharon inquired with a state trooper if they had found a stuffed dog among the bus rubble. They hadn't noticed one, but he offered to take another look.

After some searching, the trooper found a diesel fuel-soaked brown-and-white stuffed dog.

It was Regina.

Tuesday morning Sharon took Regina to Novelty Cleaners to see if they might be able to clean up the dog enough that Jessi could have it back. She expected to be told there wasn't anything they could do.

“We'll make her like new,” Wayne Prosecky told McIlquham. In fact, Prosecky made it his “pet” project for the day. Wayne and his wife Jennifer own Novelty Cleaners.

“I'm always trying to help people,” Prosecky said. “This was one time I could do something. I don't get a chance to do this stuff very often.”

In less than eight hours, Regina went from a mess to the best she's looked in years.

Prosecky watched the little stuffed dog the entire time it was in the dry-cleaning machine. He wanted to make sure it didn't start to fall apart.

Afterwards, he brushed up the fur and let her dry.

But Regina wasn't done yet. Regina needed new eyes and a new nose, and repairs on an ear.

Seamstress Sue Anderson of Chippewa Falls received a call from Prosecky asking if she had time to work on a special project.

The two saw to it that Regina got new eyes, a new nose, and fixed her ear. Anderson even made a special new bandana for Regina to wear.

On one side of the red fleece bandana it says “Regina.” On the other side it says “Get well Jessica.”

Regina was ready to go back to its owner.

Spreading love

Sharon McIlquham got a call saying the dog was ready to be picked up. Tuesday afternoon she stopped in to get Regina.

“You're magic, you're a miracle worker,” Sharon said to Wayne, giving him a hug. “Jessi really needs this right now.”

And after all that effort, Prosecky refused payment for renewing Regina.

“This fuels us up for awhile,” he said. “We're happy to do it.”

“Jessi's going to have a makeover, and Regina had one too,” Sharon said.

“We'd like to see Jessi when she gets out of the hospital,” Wayne said.

“This will be one of the first places she stops,” Sharon said.

On Wednesday, Jessi went in for her first surgery. But not before seeing Regina.

“Regina went into the operating room with Jessi,” said Laura McIlquham. “And she's been with her ever since. Regina looks as good as the day she was bought.”

Jessi's mom was Regina's first owner.

“When my husband and I were first married, I wanted a dog and the apartment we lived in didn't allow dogs,” Laura said. “So he got this little stuffed dog for me. Then when Jessi was born we got a real dog.”

Jessi asked her mom if she could have the stuffed dog.

“She was just barely old enough to talk,” Laura remembers. “She named her Regina, after a friend of mine.”

Though Jessi can't talk right now because of her injuries, she's still communicating plenty.

“Jessi was talking and writing furiously within an hour of getting out of surgery (on Wednesday),” Laura said. “She's written hundreds of pages of jokes and cartoons, songs of all kind. She wrote a note to the band saying that this is a tragic loss but we will get through this because “G” filled us with all his love.”

Jessi initially had surgery on her leg to repair a broken femur and fibula bones. On Wednesday she had the first surgery to repair her facial injuries. She'll have a second surgery within a week and is expected to make a full recovery.

Reach Candice Novitzke at candice.novitzke@lee.net.