CINCINNATI — Ken Hutchinson was driving his motorcycle in Westwood when he crashed and sustained life-threatening injuries after another driver pulled out in front of him, into oncoming traffic on Westwood Northern Blvd Tuesday morning.
He was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash, police said, but he remains stabilized in the hospital in a medically-induced coma.
Now, Beelistic Tattoo, where Hutchinson works, has been working to raise money for him through a GoFundMe account and by donating $10 from every tattoo or piercing done over the weekend.
He's a phenomenal person," said Killian Brockman, a tattoo apprentice at the shop. "He's been through a lot in life, but the things that he's gotten through are amazing."
When WCPO last spoke to Hutchinson in 2019, he was celebrating 15 months of sobriety earned after a long and difficult journey spent battling his addiction. He'd found a new and stable job managing recovery houses at New Foundations Recovery Housing; New Foundations told WCPO Hutchinson left last year to pursue being a full-time tattoo artist.
"It's shocking to hear," said Brockman. "One day he is around the shop all the time, 24/7 and the next day, you can't believe it."
To make matters harder, as Hutchinson has been in the hospital receiving treatment for his injuries, his co-workers at Beelistic said his home was robbed.
"Now, he's not only in the hospital, he's got no money," said Serenity Baumer, manager at Beelistic.
She said that was the final straw, driving the team at Beelistic to start the GoFundMe to raise money for a man they said is family to everyone.
"His work is just outstanding," said Baumer. "And his personality is outstanding...He's just been a powerhouse. He works here 60, 70 hours a week. He'll come in on his day off."
Hutchinson's team hopes to raise $15,000 and so far, they've raised under $2,000. Baumer said she knows Hutchinson would do the same for his co-workers, so the team is determined to do it for him.
