Niagara man’s song raises money for paralyzed girlfriend

A 23-year old woman in Niagara Falls was paralyzed after diving into a pool last summer. Her boyfriend’s actions after the accident have lit up iTunes and touched the hearts of many.

“Being a girlfriend that can’t dance with him anymore, I can’t lay with him anymore, I can’t do anything.”

It was a warm sunny day last summer when Vallary Halladay’s life changed forever. She dove into her boyfriend’s pool and hit her head on the bottom.

“I went into fight mode where I wanted to start swimming, but I couldn’t, I realized I was sinking,” she explains.

She had broken her neck and was paralyzed. At the time Halladay had only been dating Kirk Thomas for about a month, but they were already deeply in love.

“I’d like to think it was as close as it comes to love at first sight,” says Thomas.

They had spent hours talking about the future, going to Cuba and getting married.

Now he does her makeup and helps with physiotherapy.

For Halladay, things changed after the accident, but she didn’t want to hold Thomas back, so she tried to break up with him.

“He didn’t sign up for this, so I didn’t want him to feel like he had to stay,” she says.

But not only did he stay, he wrote her a love song.

“I just started to write how I felt, and I couldn’t imagine my life without her.”

With the help of a studio in St. Catharines, and encouragement from Halladay, Thomas recorded the song and put it on iTunes for $0.99 per download.

The money will go to help pay for expensive renovations required before Halladay can go home from the hospital.

“We have to do the whole upper floor, ramps, the bed, and the bathroom. At this rate we might have to redo the kitchen so I can get around.”

Her wheelchair even comes with a hefty price tag of $30,000.

Thomas’ song “Can’t Imagine” is available for download on iTunes.