My son was in an automobile accident on March 6, 1988. Out of four people in the car, he was the only one hurt. He was airlifted by helicopter to ORMC in Orlando, Florida. He sustained a traumatic brain injury and injured his right arm sustaining multiple fractures of the right elbow. The orthopedic surgeon operated on Pete many times while he was in a coma. The doctor at the hospital said ironically the arm saved his life, as he threw it up and protected his head when the car hit a telephone pole. The night he was hurt we were told he probably would not make it through the night.

Pete was in a coma for 4-5 weeks. He had a tracheotomy tube placed to help him breath as his lung collapsed while he was in a coma. This was in for about 2 months. He was at ORMC for 3 months and then transferred to Sea Pines Rehab in Melbourne, Florida which was closer to home. While at Sea Pines, he did not respond to treatment and started to regress backwards. Dr. Olssen, his physician there felt he would do better at home and be treated on an out-patient basis.

Pete has come a long way since the accident. His major problem is short term memory and not being able to play sports anymore because of the arm injury.

Pete succeeded in getting his H.S. diploma after studying very hard to do this. He also did some volunteer work at Sea Pines which helped him get out around people again. He also had a part time job at a grocery store but after a month he started having problems with the arm again and was unable to stay with this job.

His goals for now are to find a job he can do without causing the arm a problem and is also working on getting his own apartment and being able to succeed on his own.

>From my experience with my son, I can only say to everyone don't give up your dreams, things do get better each day. God watched over you all and I'm sure he saved you all for a special reason.

My prayers are to each of you and your family. You can e-mail Pete anytime. He looks forward to hearing from everyone.

Pete's mom

Email Pete's mom