By Leah Thorsen
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
FLORISSANT, Mo. — A Florissant police officer who suffered severe arm and head injuries while chasing a burglar died Friday (May 29, 2009), hours after undergoing a surgery intended to reduce his constant pain so he could return to the job he loved, his father said.
Glennon Fernau, 44, was injured in March 2003 when he fell down a flight of concrete stairs in pursuit of an intruder. He was hospitalized for six days and remained off work until November 2003, when he returned to work in a light-duty capacity, according to a state report related to his injuries. But he lost his job in May 2004 due to his “permanent restrictions,” the report stated.
His right arm was paralyzed and the pain so intense that even a light touch felt like he was being “stabbed with a butcher knife,” said his father, George Fernau.
“The pain was 24/7 for the past six years,” he said.
Glennon Fernau wanted to be a police officer again, but to do that, he had to find a way to control the pain and regain the use of his arm. So in mid-May, he underwent the first of two surgeries at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore to have a spinal cord stimulator, which uses electrical impulses to help alleviate the sensation of pain, implanted. It seemed like everything went well, said George Fernau.
The second surgery was Thursday, and by all indications, it too had been a success. Doctors marveled at his stamina during the surgeries, he said. But in the early hours of Friday, Glennon Fernau died. His father said the cause of death was unknown, and that the results of an autopsy won’t be available for several weeks.
Despite the pain that his son endured, he relished the time he was able to spend with his family, whether it was helping his children with homework or watching them play sports.
“He loved that immensely,” George Fernau said. “His kids and his wife were the things that kept him going.”
Survivors in addition to his father include his wife, Vicki Fernau, of Florissant; his three children, Jim 17, Alexis, 15, and Collin, 8; and his mother, Lois Fernau.
Visitation is 2 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at Hutchens Mortuary at 675 Graham Road in Florissant.
A procession will leave the mortuary at 9:30 a.m. Thursday and will go to St. Sabina Church at 1625 Swallow Lane in Florissant, where a 10 a.m. Mass will be celebrated. George Fernau said his son loved riding motorcycles and invited other motorcyclists to join the procession on their bikes.
Memorials are suggested to the Fernau Education Fund at Commercial Bank in Florissant, as well as to the Missouri Department of Conservation or Shriners Hospitals for Children.
Copyright 2009 St. Louis Post-Dispatch