Still in shock, I replaced the phone in its cradle. My 21-year-old son, David, was dead; the result of a head injury received during a football game. Two days earlier, on November 9, 1985, David had made a game-saving tackle and had been voted "Player of the Week" by conference officials. His friends and teammates, arriving at his apartment to congratulate him, found him stretched out on the bed, face down, reaching for the phone -- dead!
Recently, I read of the severe brain injury suffered four years ago by Richard Austria, of Gresham, Oregon. Since the fourth anniversary of David's death has recently passed, I am reminded of the uphill battle my family and I fought to keep David alive as a young child and to overcome staggering odds to rehabilitate him. When David was three years old, he fell down a flight of stairs, sustained head injuries, and was ultimately diagnosed as suffering from acute cerebellar ataxia. The doctors were guarded and uncertain about his future. He could develop like a child with cerebral palsy; possibly he would have to wear braces and use crutches the rest of his life.
Organized medicine offered no help; so we (my wife, Margie, and I) developed a rigorous rehabilitation program of our own. Because his head often swung helplessly, we fitted him with a helmet to protect his head. With my training in nutrition, and Margie's hard work, we established a thorough nutritional program. We implemented a "cross-patterning" program -- to help his brain to organize the neurological stimuli. His body, head, and arms had to be educated as to basic posture and to the most elementary processes of movements and reaction. Day after day, week after week, year after year, I worked with David -- in the morning, before work, and after returning home. The days went by endlessly. For my part, I seemed to be standing helplessly -- like a spectator at a railroad crossing watching the box cars flash by.
Ultimately, David was not only able to walk, but he became an outstanding athlete, excelling in swimming, cross country, and track.
High school passed, but on his 21st birthday, David begged us to let him join the Santa Clara University Broncos football team. We pleaded with him not to play contact sports, but football was something he felt he had to do. At the time, we were encouraged by a medical examination, which showed David had no residuals from his past injury and no neuromuscular problems. So, David played football.
David's death has given us all a great appreciation for the gift of life. God could have taken him at three years of age, but our family was blessed with his dynamic presence for 18 additional and wonderful years. David will never be forgotten.
As Richard and the Austria family face each day, they must never give up. Each blink of the eye, each minute movement of the face, the neck, or the body, must be seen as a victory. Never give up, Richard!! David is watching you, and with each move you make, David lives. You are a champion!
