Injured hunter suffers setback

LEXINGTON — A Lincoln County man is in critical condition again after two weeks of steady progress recovering from injuries suffered in a fall from a tree stand while deer hunting.
Rita Noe said her husband, Kinney, underwent two surgeries this weekend at University of Kentucky Chandler Medical Center in Lexington because his abdominal wounds were not healing correctly.
The doctors are now trying to prevent intestinal complications and more surgeries likely will be necessary in the future.
On the morning of Nov. 13, Kinney Noe, 56, was hunting near Pine Grove Road in Lincoln County when he fell from his tree stand onto a limb.
Noe suffered damage to his liver, lungs and diaphragm when the limb entered his lower abdomen and exited his upper ribs.
Rita Noe said there had been a number of positive signs in his recovery. When Kinney was able to sit up in his hospital bed, talk to family and hospital staff and even do some physical therapy last week, Rita was hopeful he would be home by Christmas.
Now healing could take months instead of weeks.
Despite the setbacks, Rita said her husband’s constitution will continue to serve him well.
“I know God has a plan for him,” Rita Noe said. “And he’s very strong. The doctors have said his lungs are very good. He’s never been a smoker, and he’s always been very active, hunting and fishing.”
Rita said the family has been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from the community, the congregation at Stanford Baptist Church and fellow sportsmen, some of whom he befriended while working at Curtsinger’s in Danville where he is a part owner.
She has started to keep track of the visitors in a notebook so she can show her husband how many people have cared enough to stop by or call.
The family also has found a productive way to answer the most common question it is asked: “What can we do to help?”
Rita said family members have encouraged everyone to give blood, which has been crucial in the recovery process so far. Daughters Kindra Witak and Kandis Noe also have started working on a blood drive in their father’s honor.