Family, friends seek community help for Denton County firefighter injured in crash
A firefighter paramedic with Denton County’s Emergency Services District 1 is in the ICU after a motorcycle accident March 22, and his coworkers are asking for the community’s help in supporting his wife and children while he’s in the hospital.
Coworkers put together a GoFundMe for the family of Corey Claytor, where anther firefighter paramedic with the same emergency services district wrote that family and friends are optimistic about Claytor’s recovery but that it will be expensive.
“Corey is much more than a coworker, but is a brother to me and all of the firefighters [in] DCESD1,” the coworker, Grant Jack, wrote in the GoFundMe. “Corey has given a lot to the community, and this would be a good time to give back to him in a time of need.”
The GoFundMe seeks to raise money to offset the financial burden of recovery for Claytor and his family. As of Tuesday afternoon, the fundraiser had garnered more than $21,000 in donations.
Clatyor started full-time the fire department in 2021 and has since been named rookie of the year and received a lifesaving award from the emergency services district, a spokesperson told the Star-Telegram. He joined the department as a volunteer in January 2020 and became part-time in April 2020.
The motorcycle crash happened while Claytor was off duty, late on March 22, the emergency services district president Sam Johnson wrote in a news release. He sustained multiple injuries to his head, neck and right leg and will require surgery.
“Our brother, his family, and friends need the thoughts and prayers of our community and beyond,” Johnson wrote in the release.