August 22, 2025
Local Lake County Florida Couple Rebuilding After Devastating Accident
By Kyle Coppola
Local Lake County Florida Couple Rebuilding After Devastating Accident
A Lake County family is pleading for support after a tragic worksite accident in early March left a local husband and father paralyzed from the shoulders down.
On March 3, 2025, Gene Russ was critically injured while working as a subcontractor for Davey Resource Group, Inc., which was contracted by Duke Energy. Russ was helping to pull old power poles when the accident occurred, changing his life and that of his wife, Julie Russ forever.
The accident left Gene a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the shoulders down. After spending a month in the intensive care unit at Orlando Regional Medical Center, he was transferred to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia, where he has been undergoing rehabilitation for the past five months.
(Gene somehow survived his accident but is now paralyzed.)
“Gene has fought every single day with incredible courage,” Julie Russ says. “But nothing about this has been easy.”
The couple, who previously lived in a two-story home in Lake County where all the living space was upstairs, have since relocated to a temporary home in Atlanta, more than two hours away from their permanent residence. Due to Gene’s condition, he can no longer return to their former home.
Although workers’ compensation covers Gene’s medical care, the family faces mounting expenses that are not covered, including the cost of a wheelchair-accessible vehicle, moving services, and the construction of a new, accessible forever home. Julie has also stepped away from her job to become Gene’s full-time caregiver.
(Gene was an incredibly hard worker and did everything he could to support his family.)
The couple is now in the process of selling their bowrider boat and 45-foot fifth-wheel camper both of which Gene can no longer use to help cover everyday expenses.
“We’re doing everything we can to rebuild a life where Gene can live with dignity, regain some independence, and come back home,” Julie says.
The Russ family is now asking their community and the public for help. A fundraiser has been launched to support their immediate and long-term needs.
“Every donation, no matter the size, brings us one step closer to getting Gene back home,” Julie says. “From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for your love, generosity, and prayers. Your support gives us hope in the hardest of times.”
If you’d like to donate, the family has set up at Gofundme link.
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
