My name is Carrie and I am glad you are here. I will tell you a little bit about myself and the family. I graduated from Deer Valley High School in Glendale, Arizona in June of 1988. I was tired of school, so I just continued working and figured I would go back to school at a later time to increase my education level.

On April 29,1989, we heard the news the family had been dreading. My Grandfather,who had been battling leukemia, had passed away. On May 2, 1989, my 16 year old brother and I who was 18 at the time headed down to Tucson, Arizona to attend our grandfather's funeral. My brother and I did not make it all the way to Tuscon though. On the way, I lost control of the truck and it rolled off of the highway and flipped end over end until it landed upside down and was teetering on a culvert. Rob was thrown from the truck and was knocked unconscious. For some reason he did not have his seatbelt on. I was still conscious and strapped upside down from my seat belt in the smashed truck. The paramedics transported my brother by air to University Medical Center in Tucson. Meanwhile, the rescue workers were stabilizing the the truck and using the Jaws of life to get the bent door opened to get me out. Once I was out, they transported me by air also. I lost consciousness during transport. Now we were both in comas.

My parents were waiting at my Grandmother's house and were getting worried that something was wrong because we should have already been there by this time. We were to meet them there. My dad called DPS(Department of Public Safety). He asked if there had been any car trouble or anything on the highway from Phoenix to Tuscon involiving a dark blue GMC truck. The DPS officer asked him who he was and that yes there was some trouble involving the truck. My dad was told it had been involved in an accident. He was not told how bad off we were just that we were still alive and what hospital we were at. My dad had no idea what he would find when he reached the hospital. My mom stayed behind and said I can't go see my kids right now until you tell me how they are.

When my dad reached the hospital he found something he never imagined. Both of his children were in comas with tubes and ventilators already hooked up to them. We both sustained head injuries but our prognoseses were differen't. My parents were told to expect full recovery for me but they gave my poor brother only a 2% chance at even staying alive and saying that even if he did live he would be brain dead and have to remain on the ventilator. I was bruised on the whole left side of my body because of the impact of the truck, two compound fractures of my vertabrae, cracked and loose teeth, a cut on my face, a gash on my right knee and an abrasion on my right calf. My brother had one little cut which required one stitch. My parents could not believe that our prognoses were so opposite. They said I looked far more worse off than him. I was in a coma for about 3 weeks and my brother was in a coma for about 6 weeks. I went through physical, occupational, pshycological, recreational, visional, vocational, and speech therapy for about 5 months. My brother went through occupational, speech, and physical therapy but, they determined he as not making any progress so the insurance company ended his therapy.

Not long after my parents set up their house to accomidate my brother and his special needs which included a wheelchair. My dad made ramps to go up the little step in the front and the back of the house. He also cut a hole in a wall and finished it off to make his room hospital bed and wheelchair accessible. My brother is tube fed through a tube in his stomach, has to be pushed in his wheelchair and needs complete care. My parents have done it for the last 8 years and will continue to care for him at home because they feel that is where he gets the best care. Which is true, he is truly loved and cared for at home and never left out of any family outings or get togethers.