ELKHART — A Homan Lumber employee who was injured at his workplace continues to go through a slow but steady recovery, according to family members.

Tommy Woods, 49, of Elkhart, was injured Feb. 15 when the safety guards of a machine he was working on came loose, shooting a piece of wood into his face under his nose.

The actions of a co-worker may have helped save Tommy Woods’s life, said Patricia Woods, Tommy Woods’s sister. Charles Kincaid was working the morning of Feb. 15 when Tommy Woods was injured. He ran toward Woods and held him while paramedics arrived.

“The family owes him a great deal,” Patricia Woods said.

He was taken to the IU Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis with several injuries, including a broken right cheekbone, jaw and nose, as well as two injured vertebrae, damaged arteries and other breakages around his face, said Patricia Woods.

Patricia Woods said her brother might lose his hearing and he still has to use a feeding tube that was installed to help him eat and drink. But reconstruction surgeries around his face were successful. He is going through therapy, and is now able to walk, move around and talk.

The injury and subsequent recovery have brought the family together, but they have also affected the family financially, said Patricia Woods.

The family set up an account on Chase Bank. Anyone interested in helping can make a donation to the Patricia Woods / Care of Tommy Woods account, number 185952383. A Facebook group was also created where friends and family can show their support for Tommy Woods.

“We showed him what’s been posted on Facebook and it got to him,” Patricia Woods said. “He knows there’s lot of people who support him and he’s very thankful for everybody.”

Tommy Woods has gone through several surgeries and he’s shown a significant improvement in the last 10 days, but he still has more recovery to do before he is released or transferred to another hospital. That might take a few months.

Because she has had to stay in Indianapolis for her brother, Patricia Woods said the hotel bills continue to escalate and the family requested Tommy Woods be transferred to Kokomo, where a relative lives.