DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A local father is still in a medically-induced coma weeks after a workplace explosion critically injured him.
Charlie Shearer suffered burns over 75 percent of his body from an explosion and fire at DeKalb County repair shop in February. Because of the tragic accident, the 55-year-old will be in a hospital for months.
Now a group of his friends at a local auction house are coming together to help pay for the bills that are piling up for him.
“He's been coming here for 10 years. He's here every weekend. Everyone knows that's Charlie's chair," said Lakeside Auction owner Samantha Patrick.
Shearer is a welder by trade. Three weeks ago, his friend Patrick heard what happened.
“We actually saw it on Channel 2. Several people had tagged me on Facebook saying, ‘Is this Charlie?’” Patrick said.
Shearer had been working inside the trailer of the truck when it exploded into flames. Doctors said he could be in the hospital for several more months.
So Patrick will put her skills to work to raise money for Shearer’s family. They'll hold a big event at a Newton County auction house -- a live auction, live music and lots of barbecue.
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“If you're bidding on an item, you actually hold this number up,” said friend Sabrina Mervin.
317 is Shearer’s number. He has three children and two grandchildren.
“The people here at the auction, we don't just call them customers. We call them family,” Mervin said.
And the “family” wants Shearer to know his chair will be waiting for him when he gets back.
“We all know when something like this happens to somebody, life doesn't stop. Unfortunately, bills keep coming in whether you're laying in a bed in a hospital or you're working. We want to make sure he has a home to come to,” Patrick said.
The fundraiser will be in the lot of Lakeside Auction on Sunday, April 28.