(Photo provided) Morristown resident John Rataiczak, shown here with his wife Melissa, has been named a Stroke Hero finalist after helping his wife get medical treatment after noticing she was having signs of a stroke in 2022.

MORRISTOWN – While attending a church picnic in 2022, Morristown resident John Rataiczak’s wife Melissa started “feeling funny.”

Then she noticed the left side of her body was losing feeling and then her speech started to slur.

The couple realized it was the signs of a stroke, something they had learned about while volunteering with the American Heart Association for decades.

“We immediately went to the hospital and they diagnosed her with a stroke,” he said.

Had they not known the signs of a stroke they may have just ignored them or thought it would go away, he said.

FAST is the acronym used to help people remember the signs of a stroke: F = facial droop; A = arm weakness; S = speech difficulty; and T = time to dial 911.

“In her situation she lost feeling in her left side. She said she felt funny and then she lost feeling and then her speech was starting to slur,” he said.

After receiving initial treatment at WVU Medicine Barnesville Hospital, Melissa Rataiczak then received additional treatment at Riverside Neurological Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and at Mount Carmel Hospital in Columbus. Finally she came back to Barnesville Hospital.

Today, she is doing really well, Rataiczak said.

“It’s been a journey. … She is doing remarkably well and was able to dance at the Heart Ball,” he said, referring to the American Heart Association event.

Because of his quick action to help his wife, Rataiczak has been named a finalist in the American Stroke Association’s 2026 Stroke Hero Awards.

Since the stroke, Rataiczak said he and his wife try to get the word out about stroke symptoms, teaching people about the FAST acronym.

“It means a lot,” he said of being named a finalist. “When I first heard about it I thought it was a cool honor. Then I realized the more I can get the word out about the warning signs of a stroke, the more people will know those signs and can save a life, their own life or the life of a loved one.”

Rataiczak is one of nine finalists nationwide for the “Voters’ Choice Hero” award, “which recognizes individuals making a difference in stroke awareness, prevention or recovery,” according to the ASA. To vote for him now through March 18, visit Stroke.org/HeroVote. Winners will be announced May 1 during American Stroke Month.

Rataiczak said he never thought his wife would have a stroke.

“Knowing the signs we acted fast. It was a tremendous help in her road to recovery,” he said. “She was healthy. She ate well and didn’t smoke. If it can happen to her, it can happen to anybody,” he said.

Rataiczak and his wife have been married for 43 years. They attended Bellaire High School together and graduated in 1979.

“We were best friends in high school. I went off to college. We wrote letters back and forth and it was clear we wanted to take it to the next step,” he said. “She made the first move and here we are many years later. She wasn’t going to wait on shy John Rataiczak to make a move.”

The couple lives in Morristown. Rataiczak is manager of WesBanco in Barnesville.