name a good friend of mine
took a week’s vacation from work to go
dear home in Mount Pleasant and we had a
nice little place just outside of town
of Mount Pleasant and Steve and I like
down together so he’ll go to one tree
and I’ll go maybe 10 20 30 50 yards away
from Steve where we can see each other
and we can talk and can kind of have fun
and and we hunt so that particular
morning was beautiful it was very calm
it was really cold and it was the sun
was shining it was just a great day
Steve and I have been up in our our tree
stance or for the mid for the morning
and had several deer come by us was
really Steve’s first year of bomani and
we had a nice deer a nice buck that was
starting to come down the trail to us
and right before that Steve looked at me
and this is kind of typical of Steve and
he had forgotten I forgot my release and
release is the thing that you clipped a
boat you know to be able to shoot it I
didn’t think you know because that’s
just Steve is kind of funny we’re kind
of chuffin and the deer came down and
you know stood at about 10 yards from
Steve and we’re looking each other and
Steve takes a shot and she was
completely under the deer and you know
if you know hunter sometimes that would
be the other world for me other cry
missed that deer we were laughing
hysterically because it was funny we
thought it was it was just great and
typical of Steve so at that time frame
it was about 10 o’clock morning decided
we would get down out of the tree stands
that we were at and would move a little
further into the timber and try to catch
what we call midday movement for deer
especially during the week of the rut do
you like to move around a lot especially
midday so Steve and I went down to
another ditch and Steve got in his
climbing stand about 40 yards here and I
walked down to another spot where I
could see Steve and got my climbing
stand on attached it to the tree and
then shimmied up the tree when I got to
the top of the tree I was on a hill so
this way looking out where I thought the
deer would come from which they never
come where you think they’re going to
come from it was about 10 10 feet up
behind me was about 25 to 30 feet and
I’ve decided that I didn’t really like
how
treestand was setting I wanted to adjust
it I was just getting ready to attach my
safety harness to that tree and I
decided that way as I adjust in my
stance I took the top part of my stand
it’s a two-piece climbing stand and
hooked the top moved it hooked it back
and then put my weight on to move the
bottom part with my feet when I did that
it was apparent that I had not clipped
the top part of my tree stand back onto
the tree because it moved and came apart
and it came apart just about that much I
just tell people my life changed with
just a couple of inches when that
happened it jerked me back and my back
foot went off the back of my climbing
tree Stan and I fell backwards and as I
fell backwards I went to grab the top
part of the tree sandwich course wasn’t
attached to the tree and I fell and I
fell 28 feet landing on the back of my
head now if you know 30 foot fall is
considered a death fall so it’s three
stories think about that so when you’re
falling in the timber not only do you
have to worry about the height but you
also have to worry about what’s on the
ground because there’s a lot of deadly
things on the ground when you fall I
fell landed completely on the back of my
head and my feet and my legs came up
over my head with such force that it
completely snapped my spinal cord into
all but severed it and and broke my back
obviously pretty severe I was knocked
out for probably about ten seconds I
wish I was knocked out for the whole
time but I came to fairly quickly and
immediately I knew that something was
not right I kept just panicking and I’m
touch mind I’m touching my legs and
something doesn’t feel right at that
doesn’t feel like I’m you know touching
my legs Steve my friend had just gotten
down at his tree stand to come running
over to me nieces will you’re fine you
just broke your legs you’re fine and I
told Stephen Oh Stephen I’m not fine I’m
not fine at all I have I’ve broken my
back I said something’s wrong you got to
get you got to get somebody here I’m
going to die not knowing really what
happened I thought well
yeah I mean I could tell something was
severely wrong I knew I was going to die
well we were smart enough to at least
bring our cell phones with this seems
smart at that time but you know Steve
and I kind of cest the situation and I
was in excruciating pain I mean just
pain that I’ve never obviously
experienced before in my life
I told Steve I said look out you know
I’m dying grabbing my cell phone
Steve grabs my cell phone and I dialed
my wife at home so that’s one of those
calls that you’re getting you’re calling
your wife honey I love you I fell out on
my trium I’m going to die you know I
love the time that we’ve had together
can you tell the kids I love them Dustin
Riley cart until how much I love them
you know you’re crying you’re panicking
you know it’s funny those things people
think you know is your guy you’re tough
you know guess it’s not like that at all
you panic you don’t want to tie I don’t
want I nobody wants to die but I thought
I was I thought I was dying
so you know there’s my wife getting a
phone call that she still you know
remembers to this day obviously of me
telling her how much I love her live but
I’m not going to be there at the end of
the night I’m going to die so I hung up
the phone with her because I really
couldn’t talk anymore and Steve then
told mrs. Willy I’ve called 9-1-1 I have
to go I mean you got to leave you don’t
leave me here alone and I says I have to
have got to go find a place so that I
can get the emergency personnel to come
find you because we’re in the middle of
timber we’re not just off the side of
the road so so Steve left and as he’s
walking away and almost remember this
and people were like you know I don’t
know maybe I shouldn’t tell this part
story but I always do is is again I come
back to thank you know I’m pretty
independent person I was pretty tough
you know and people you know you see in
the movies that someone’s dying it’s
like you know you’re strong it wasn’t
like that when Steve started to leave I
just absolutely panicked I started
screaming out help me help me please God
help me you know crying and I’m going to
die alone and it’s very you know it was
a very humbling moment obviously and I’m
thinking you know this is it
going to die so I laid there on my back
and then rolled over to my to my stomach
which caused a lot more excruciating
pain but and then laid there just trying
to focus on I guess what I was going to
do and how I was going to get out of the
situation trying to stay conscious but
the best I can
about 20 minutes later I could hear the
emergency personnel coming through the
timber and and they had found me and
talked to me in you know told me they
were going to try to try to get me out
of there going to try to make me better
and try to get me you know somewhere
safe and you know at that point most of
those folks a small town I knew all
those people so one of the police
officers was Dana another was Marc and I
remember asking at one point like I said
Dana did you bring your gun he’s like
yeah why would you ask Madison so I want
you in so much pain and I just don’t
know I don’t want I just can you just
take your gun out can you just shoot me
no no we’re not going to do that we’re
gonna get you out of here we get you out
of here
and kind of gave me a little pep talk
and then you know that’s mazing else I
don’t want to live you know say alright
I want to live so so then I got really
scared because then I heard the life
flight come in I heard a helicopter come
in and I realize Who I am a lot of
trouble here this is going to be bad
still in this day I can handle a
helicopter when I hear it it’s a it just
brings back bad memories but they picked
me up put me on a gurney and took me
about 400 yards through the timber to
get me to an open field where the
helicopter had landed so we flew up to
Iowa City keeping in mind that I already
called my wife and I told her what’s
going on so they were waiting there for
me when I came off of the off of the
helicopter I remember as my wife and my
in-laws and then and then another friend
and you know they were there my wife
came over and and I was still you know I
still I did want to live but I was still
not sure what was going to go on so I
was still really in bad spirits and
remember she came over and she kind of
leaned down to the gurney you know and
said a few things that that I’ll never
repeat repeat just because it’s just
something that’s between her and I but
you know and it really helped and I went
in for about a seven-hour surgery
keep in mind doctors are there they’re
realists they’re pretty
one and I’m ever saying I ever going to
walk again no means it’s that simple no
you’re not you know you’re used nearly
severed your spinal cord so bad or good
I don’t know frankly I think it’s good
because you get on with your life at
that point you know I just said okay
let’s get let’s get this done let’s get
it through it so I can get back to my
life and back to the people that I care
for so I went through that surgery came
out and to make a long story short on
that side then you go into rehab
so it’s interesting thing about rehab is
I don’t already have four I mean I
really don’t understand I’m going what
are we doing what we’re going to teach
me everything that you don’t know how to
do now how did you everything you know
they don’t know you don’t you don’t get
it so it was I didn’t know how to they
got me on a table laid me down table and
said we’re gonna teach out rollover what
are you talking about it and I could not
roll over and it just hit me you know
I’m like this is this is terrible I
could I couldn’t roll over I couldn’t
sit up on my own I couldn’t get into
anything on my own I have nurses in out
of my room the folks that do it the
occupational therapists the physical
therapists these were little girls
I mean their little gals I mean they’re
like this big and they’re mean and as
nasty as you’re ever gonna find anybody
and I mean that the most awesome way in
the world and they just kick your butt
get out of bed wake up let’s go you can
do this come on you can you can animal
and I cried they cry you you know you
need to have a hard day they’d have a
hard day but they never let you quit
they never let you stop you know and
they would encourage you so I went
through that I had to learn how to set
up I had to learn how to roll over at
learn how to get the chair out of a
chair for me just things you just don’t
think about you got to remember just
like seven eight ten days before that I
was able body I mean I did everything on
my own I mean I just and it was just a
matter of inches I’m a guy used to set
up a night my wife and I would try we
talked in the room my gosh I was just
hunting so yeah I was just kind of how
did this happen I was just telling them
and she would usually just tell me I
quit me a baby and she’s a tough gal she
has to be to be married to me but you
know it’s I wasn’t ready for that so I
went through about three months of rehab
and you know things like that made me a
lot better obviously it went back to
work
at the time I was store direct at the
Mount Pleasant IV at that time and I
want to get back to work
so three months after rehab somewhere
around January so going back part time
work went into three days a day you know
it’s interesting because I had to
rethink everything there also how do I
check how do I say how do I you know
what what do people think you know those
kind of things and really wasn’t that
big of a deal I was a lot faster because
you can’t keep up with two wheels I can
fly around that story like there’s no
tomorrow
yes I’ve run over a few people that
happens that happens it does but I also
realized I was a very good to either
you’ve seen the two of theirs in the
grocery stores you put boxes home well
they just set boxes on me somebody would
kind of push me from behind we go drop
some stuff in the aisles and then we’d
stock so that’s just the way it was so
really at that point once they enter
back I kind of entered in to that life
you know of a person with a disability
and I’d ask you just to take a few
minutes a few seconds and ask yourself
what your opinion or your perception of
someone with a disability is and be
honest be honest with yourself because I
was before my accident I had my opinion
and I don’t know that it was a good
opinion necessarily for whatever reason
but you know what that perception is
probably wrong I know the perception for
me was wrong and it’s changed its
changed a lot we are independent and we
are more than our disability and we’re
more than just that guy in wheelchair
okay so that’s what I’ve become to a
certain extent and that kind of
wheelchair you know the guy in the
wheelchair you know the guy IV the runs
you know the hidys and wheelchair you
know the guy that coaches that team he’s
that team you know from Mount Pleasant
the guy in the wheelchair and that’s
that’s what it is that’s pretty much
what it is I like that but it is what it
is I also talked it at several hundred
safety courses you think well yeah
you’re a good example I don’t take I’m
kind of the I tell you what not to do
kind of deal but I always tell the group
I’m like I don’t like doing this because
I’m that guy that’s the guy that fell
out of the tree stand that’s together
and there’s a lot more to me and there’s
a lot more to another person that is in
a wheelchair a lot more
to another person that maybe has a
different kind of disability whether
it’s physical or non-physical it doesn’t
really matter there’s a lot more to that
person then and there’s no reason to be
scared of them either so I always look
at it by the time I get to work at seven
I’ve already been through more than most
people have you know for that day and I
think people with disability have so
many things offer on that side of it
because they’re mentally strong not only
tough I mean I think it’s just nothing
nothing short of amazing we have amazing
determination mental toughness
resilience to drive you know and that’s
just what it takes to get out of bed in
the morning I’ve talked to people all
over the place that have disabilities I
was talking to someone that’s not have
some you know we discussed it I still go
places sometimes or someone look at my
life and ask what does you want to eat
you know manhattan’s everyone’s wrong
you know which is funny I don’t let it
bother me so much as is I used to but
I’ll give you another analogy to so we
discussed last night also about a door
so so when I’m going somewhere I see
somebody and they open the door for me
here’s my response in my mind like that
Kentico you don’t think I get to door
just cuz I’m a little chair and get the
door when you talk of this ridiculous I
get the door then guess what if they
don’t get the door like cheese you can’t
you’re for diner wheelchair
why would you do that you know it’s
funny I mean it’s funny because it’ll
get me all riled up and give me give me
whatever and you get a lot of stares you
do a lot of stares and I talked to the
Youth Leadership Foundation which is a
bunch of high school kids at the college
gives it and that there with
disabilities Memphis but whatever
happens to be and I explained to them
that once you really realize what
they’re looking at it’s not really I
mean some people look and it’s not a
good look and those people you just leg
will you look at it they just freaked
out enough but most people you look at
they’re looking at something I look at
my wheelchair most the time they’re
looking at my wheelchair it’s
fascinating to it it is pretty I hate it
but we kind of got a good relationship I
mean you know we we we can’t try to take
care of each other but that’s a lot of
times what they’re looking at I have a
truck and it’s it’s got an amazing an
amazing lift on it or both the doors go
out and it’s a spectacle in fact it’s
such a spectacle a little my kids are
with me and I
don’t they hit the button my daughter
will go I thought that because everybody
starting with you know and I don’t let
the body because it is it’s cool
something you never see it for what is
well there’s a chance you know for some
education what is it that come from what
so dope what’s it all about is how do
you drive tried with my hands here’s how
it works I mean it’s just there’s so
many incredible opportunities on that
side of it but it’s but it’s interesting
how those those perceptions go on and
I’ll give you an example just kind of
day in the life too close and I what
I’ve got is a top ten list I went to the
doctor one time and again that’s a
personal goal the doctor all the time in
fact my doctor is hounds me all the time
you need to come in and see me what’s
wrong you need to come in so I’m busy
doc I don’t want to come in there he
orders I don’t want to come in so but
this is my top ten list I went to a
place and for the doc for doctors point
in in about ten minutes must just been
the day but a man just a million people
you know saying things and I kind of the
top ten list but but number ten while I
was there was you better slow down
you’re going to get a speeding ticket
I heard that three times three times
that day number number nine so how long
you been crippled that’s a new one not
very long you know sure wish I could
drive around one of those things all day
long hey be my guest
be my guest bless your heart eat poor
thing here that number six is how did
you get here I mean like I drove is that
safe you drive you drive yeah yeah I can
drive
number five is I have a friend in
Arkansas in a wheelchair maybe you know
him
or that yep I know everybody in the
country in the wheelchair everybody so
number four what’s wrong with you
nothing I just do this for the good
parking good seat number three do you
need help out to your car well how the
heck do you think I got in here not that
I said some of these I did say to those
folks that some I didn’t obviously but
number two was one of my favorite ones
it wasn’t number long but it was number
number two was good did you come that
big out big bus out front with the rest
of the wheelchair folk nope I didn’t
necessarily I didn’t see a big bus out
there and number one I get this awesome
but it’s great to see you out about I
yeah yeah you know the home that they
keep me out somebody left the cage open
and I got out set but they’re looking for me thank you have a great day