‘IT’S A JOURNEY’
Former Doherty star Massenburg sees light during his road to recovery
WESTBOROUGH — Tariq Massenburg was playing an NBA 2K video game with a cousin in Virginia and a friend in Worcester on a late October evening when he noticed his hands and feet were getting tingly.
The 25-year-old Doherty High and Assumption College/University graduate from Worcester didn’t think much about it and soon headed to bed to join his girlfriend, Kayla Prokopowich, in the Spencer apartment they share with their 4-year-old twin boys, Kashton and Kyzer.
Massenburg quickly fell asleep, but with dawn approaching, he woke up and, to no avail, tried to sit up.
“I was really struggling … I was struggling and flopping all around,” Massenburg slowly, but determinedly said earlier this month via a speaking valve attached to his throat from Whittier Rehabilitation Hospital, where he has been since Nov. 8.
“I asked, “Babe, are you OK?’ ” Prokopowich, 26, recalled. “He said he couldn’t feel his hands and his feet, and he couldn’t hold his head up. I noticed he was slurring his words.”
Scared and nervous, Prokopowich remained calm and punched 911 into her cellphone. It was Oct. 20, and sunrise was about two hours away.
Massenburg didn’t pass out and was fully aware of his surroundings as EMTs transported him via ambulance to the UMass Memorial Medical Center on Belmont Street in Worcester.
Massenburg was a star for Highlanders and Greyhounds
Massenburg attended Worcester Tech as a freshman before asking his parents, James and Christine, to allow him to transfer to Doherty.
They repeatedly rejected the request from the middle of their three children because they valued everything Tech had to offer. They finally relented after talking with various folks who touted the academic and athletic opportunities at Doherty.
Massenburg, who began playing football for the Worcester Vikings as a tyke, became a three-year starter for the Highlanders, who won the 2013 Division 4 state championship his sophomore season.
“The coaches didn’t know me, so I kind of had to make a name for myself,” Massenburg said. “I like how I was able to work my way up.