Who I am

I live in Austin Texas with my wife Tere of 20 years and three children, Jack (14) Josh (13) and Corrie (8). I am a CFO of a student housing company. I am a christian and active in my church and several other organizations. I am a runner, a slow runner.

What I'm overcoming

Broken Neck,Back, Shoulder, Pelvis, 20 ribs, punctured lung

Date of injury

2008-1-10 00:00:00

My Story

On January 10th 2008, I had arrived at my childer's school an hour before my son's basketball practice was scheduled to end with the goal of running for an hour before his practice ended. I was running a route new to me, and no one else new that I was running or where I was running. I headed west on Braker Lane - running on the sidewalk, and then turned back east again. Apparently as I was crossing an intersection (Braker & Ptarmigan) a truck came out of the alley, hit me and the ran over me. I was left in the middle of Braker in the turn lane. The driver of the truck did not stop and was never found. Miraculously a car saw the accident and stopped and called 911, the car immediately behind them was an off duty EMT. The ambulance arrived quickly and I was transported to the Brackenridge Trauma Center. I have no memory of the accident or the next approximate 2 1/2 weeks. My injuries were pervasive - broken neck, back, pelvis, 20 ribs, shoulder, punctured lung. I was on a ventilator & feeding tube for 2 weeks. I have 3 pins & 10 screws in my back and a long screw through my pelvis. I left Brackenridge on Feb. 4 and was transferred to Health South Rehab hospital - when I arrived I could not lift my legs. Over the next 2 1/2 weeks I was taught to walk again. I left the hospital for home on Feb 22 in a wheelchair and a neck and torso brace. I was in outpatient rehab for approximately 6 weeks. I returned to work on March 23, 2008 and began running again on July 4th. Those are the facts - but the real story is the people that surrounded me. God was awesome in my healing and recovery. My family was completely taken care of, my parents arrived and didnt leave for nearly 3 months, my work family was outstanding, the outpouring from our church was amazing. I am blessed beyond measure. By the way - the feeding tube diet is amazing!!! - lost approximately 40lbs in 2-3 weeks, while I was sleeping!

My Heroes

My Father has the uncanny ability to find the positive in anything, no matter how bad a run I have had, he can somehow make it seem like a victory. No wonder they call him "The Legend"

What I've learned so far

Often, the difference between achieving your potential and achieving nothing comes down to your internal desire, not external factors.

I Will again

My Goal is to: Run a Marthon By 2009-11-15 00:00:00

My first milestone is to: Run a 5K By 2008-09-30 00:00:00

My second milestone is to: Run a 10k By 2009-04-30 00:00:00

My third milestone is to: Run a Half Marathon By 2009-06-30 00:00:00