Perseverance - "steadfastness despite difficulty or delay in achieving success"

Mary was 16 years old when she was involved in a head-on collision. It was November 22, 2009.

Mary suffered multiple fractures. Every limb in her body was broken. The force of the impact was such that it was a miracle in itself that she survived. The whiplash effect caused a traumatic brain injury. 

There are no words to describe the feelings of any parent who gets that news. Mary was flown from the accident scene by helicopter to Arkansas Children’s Hospital. In transport, she received 4 units of blood. She would spend the next 5 months of her life at Arkansas Children’s hospital. It was there that the story begins. It is an incredible story of love, and community, and patience, and trust.

Flocks of people appeared at the hospital – Mary’s classmates, friends, family friends, church friends, co-workers  – all clamoring for information about Mary’s status. Over the next few days, the care she received in the PICU was heroic. She went through multiple surgeries, including brain surgery and on the day after Thanksgiving 4 surgeons each took a limb and put her body back together.

Each day brought new visitors and more questions. Family came in from across the country but updating Mary’s status became overwhelming.  A family member suggested using Caring Bridge as a communication tool to keep people informed about Mary. Caring Bridge allowed the family to post news and updates, prayers and emotions about the experience.

And then, it took off - over 1000 visitors in the first few days checking on her status and posting in the guestbook, offering their own prayers and words of comfort. Today, there have been over 500,000 visits to the Caring Bridge site from places across the globe! People have reflected that Mary’s story caused them to get down on their knees and pray again. 

Mothers of Mary’s school friends filled baskets full of homemade cakes and goodies and delivered them to all shifts of doctors and nurses who were treating her.

The booster club at school decided to sponsor a fundraiser for Mary's care. It would be a celebrity basketball game. As tickets were being printed, the demand grew to the point where the venue had to be changed twice to accommodate the crowd. Over 3,000 people came to the game to support Mary and show their love to her family.

Although Mary experienced several medical setbacks, her stamina and perseverance in therapy was inspiring. She became a model of encouragement for people who were facing their own adversities.

After 5 months at Children’s Hospital, it was time for Mary to move. She would spend the next 3 months at Baptist Health Rehabilitation Institute and similarly, the doctors, nurses, and therapists cared for her as if she were their own. 

In the 8 months of her hospitalization, Mary never spent a night alone. Friends rotated through multiple shifts to ensure that when her parents were getting much needed rest, someone was there. There was not a day that went by, unless by request, that dinner wasn’t waiting at the door for Mary’s family when they got home.

After her transition home, Mary received an honorary diploma and graduated with her class at Mount St. Mary, so great was the love of her classmates!  She continued her school work through the Little Rock School District and on May 13, 2014 she graduated! 

In August of 2010 and every year since, friends have organized a golf tournament. There has yet to be anything less than a full slate of teams. Proceeds will help families coping with Traumatic Brain Injuries.

On May 2, 2024, Mary passed away.

Who knew what good God would do through a tragic accident that should have easily taken her life?

We asked Him in prayer to do many things to satisfy our own will and purpose. Save her life. Heal her. Give her good health. Return her to the girl we once knew. Make her new.

In His infinite wisdom, and through His “thoughts that were not our thoughts, and ways that were not our ways”, He helped us see another purpose. 

He gave us what we needed, providing blessing after blessing after blessing for 14 and 1/2 years. Blessings that will be counted and recounted over the years. Blessings that were manifested through the love of a young girl, whose life touched thousands of others.

The most profound blessing and gift was to witness her passing - to actually see in action, what we believe about eternal life. We were witnesses of this - watching her open her eyes to a beatific vision and then close them as she drew her last breath. Seeing almost immediately, her complexion change and appear angelic, as if overcome by total and ineffable peace.

Whether you believe in God or eternal life, or not, I hope you can hold on to these words of attestation. We have witnessed God’s love through her life, and now we have experienced his joy, and rejoice with her, as He has called her home.