Brentwood soccer to hold Casey Ellin Day

The Brentwood High School athletic department and the Brentwood Athletic Booster Club will hold Casey Ellin Day on Thursday at 4 p.m. at Ray Perez Soccer Field when the Brentwood boys soccer team hosts Sachem East.

Ellin, who played for Brentwood in 2003-04, fractured his C4, C5 and C6 vertebrae in his back on June 1 and was paralyzed from the neck down. A release from the Brentwood School District said Ellin had dived into a wave at the beach and the water was too shallow.

Jones Beach lifeguards pulled him to shore and called 911, and he was immediately transported by helicopter to Nassau University Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition, the release said. Within 24 hours of his stay, Ellin had two life-saving surgeries; spinal fusion C4 and C5, and a femoral graft.

Ellin, 25, who worked at Stony Brook University as assistant director for Intramurals and Sport Clubs, was discharged from Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in West Orange, N.J. on Oct. 9, where he spent more than two months receiving physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy, according to a post written by his sister, Bridget, on a site she created, gofundme.com/CaseyEllin.

Though he was discharged, Ellin can only move one of his biceps, and the family said it needs to purchase a handicapped-accessible van. The costs of his continual recovery, however, are expected to reach a much larger amount than his family will be able to afford, the release said.

All money raised at Brentwood High School during the game will go directly to the family.

“We've asked every kid, even if it's a dollar to help out,” Brentwood boys soccer coach Ron Eden said. “Some kids have been really generous. We’re taking care of somebody in need from our community. And our community gets it. It wasn’t a big sell.”