The Good Samaritan 11/16/16 10:00pm

Day 50:

Josh is still in a coma but making baby steps each day. We celebrate those. Josh had his trach capped intermittently today allowing him to moan and groan. The physical therapists put him in a back brace today allowing him to sit straight up in bed. By Friday they hope to get him in a wheelchair and out of his room.

Since the accident, Josh has favored the left side of his body. Most of his movements have come from his left arm or left leg. Until today, we weren't sure if that was a result of his spinal cord injury or his brain injury. The physical therapists were able to confirm that his right side responds to stimulus, meaning that the weakness on his right side is due to the brain injury and not the spinal cord injury. This is a good thing. His brain can re-learn to control his right side. We ask for prayers for continued muscle control on Josh's right side.

Tonight was special. This evening in Buena Vista, CO (the site of Josh's accident) there was a special ceremony honoring the 3 runners that saved Josh. They are pictured above with my sister, Maggie, and my dad. (From Left to Right: Lucas, Micah, Maggie, Dad, and Christian). Each received a Certificate of Honor from the State Patrol of Colorado, the highest honor awarded to a civilian. They also each received a 'Lifesaver' award from the town of Buena Vista.

These three men will never fully understand the impact of the selfless actions they took that morning, and we will never be able to fully put into words our gratitude to them. When they arrived on the scene that morning, they did not know the man lying in the road. They did not know that he was a brother, a son, a friend, or a Christ-follower. They did not know that he was only 26, or that he loved the mountains. They did not know if he would live or die. Upon their arrival Josh did not have a pulse and he was not breathing. They sprang into action and performed life sustaining measures until first responders arrived. A hero is someone who in the face of danger, acts. You three will forever be heros in my book. Lucas, Micah, and Christian, you are now a part of our family and we look forward to the day that we can introduce you to the man that you saved. You saved a good man.

Luke 10:33-34 (an excerpt from the parable of the Good Samaritan)

"But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him."

All In For Josh