Putnam: He was paralyzed, but 'never lost his sense of humor' his wife recalls

Tyler and Elizabeth Kuk planned to restart their life in Lansing after Tyler was paralyzed in a fall while working as a roofer. 

They didn't get their chance. He died Wednesday morning from complications from an infection that started in a wound.

Tyler Kuk was 34. He'd lived in both Eaton Rapids and Lansing. He is being remembered as a family man with a sense of humor who overcame barriers, including a stint in prison.

“He never lost his sense of humor. He took everything in stride. He was happy,” said his wife, Elizabeth, 30. “He wished he could get up and walk (but) he was happy to just have us near him.”

Elizabeth is grappling with the unexpected loss just as the couple was making big plans for the future. They had picked out a house in Parma that could be modified for a wheelchair and accommodate their three children. They planned to move from Bay City in October.

And Tyler planned to return to school. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame in architectural design and a master’s in applied science.

They had long been financially stressed. Recently, though, they started receiving worker’s compensation payments from the accident. A friend is raising money to offset funeral expenses. 

Elizabeth said she had only been dating Tyler for three months when he fell from a two-and-a-half story building where he was working as a roofer. He had been on the job for four months.

When Tyler emerged from surgery the day of the fall, Feb. 22, 2017, Elizabeth said she proposed to him, knowing he would be paralyzed below the waist.

“He was such an amazing person, I couldn’t see myself walking away,” she said. 

She said it was right for her. The couple wed on June 16, 2017 in her parents’ yard in Onondaga.

Together they were raising his two young sons with plans to form a family with her 9-year-old daughter, Ashlie Columbus, who has myasthenia gravis, a rare neuromuscular condition. She lives with her grandparents, Chris and Barbara Eilf, of Onondaga.

Tyler became the father that Ashlie never had, Elizabeth said. He planned to adopt her. He was also close to Elizabeth’s younger sister, Kyleigh Eilf, 14. Tyler would help her with math homework over the phone.

“His favorite thing to do was family night. We would all sit together and watch movies and have popcorn and pizza and ice cream.”

The day before he died, Elizabeth said, her two stepsons, Ashton, 7, and Kamdyn, 5, watched “Jurassic World” in their father’s hospital room in Bay City.

After college, Tyler worked as a mason and lived in Eaton Rapids. While there, he was convicted on drug and breaking and entering charges in 2014, and spent 18 months in prison.

Elizabeth said he was open about his conviction.

“He was never shy about it. He said it saved his life. He was all around not the best person he needed to be. He learned a lot of life lessons. He came home and made something of himself,” she said.

In prison, Elizabeth said, Tyler took a parenting class that helped him become a better dad.

His two boys moved in with them just as he was recovering from the fall.

Elizabeth said she hopes to continue raising her stepsons and wants to move to the Onondaga area to be near her parents. She works in retail at an e-cigarette store but hopes to eventually train service dogs for kids.

Tyler left two final gifts. His family donated his kidneys.

That’s bringing some comfort to his wife.

“Both of kidneys were successfully donated. The doctor said they were beautiful,” she said. “If I can save a couple of families from having to go through what I’m going through, by all means, I would do anything.”

To donate: www.gofundme.com/final-expenses-for-tyler-kuk

Funeral services are at 7 p.m. Friday at Squires Funeral Home in Bay City. 

Judy Putnam is a columnist with the Lansing State Journal. Contact her at (517) 267-1304 or at jputnam@lsj.com. Follow her on twitter @judyputnam.