It seems like only yesterday, in fact 6 years ago it was yesterday. December 28, 2008. The Browns were playing the Steelers, playing pretty badly as usual when Andy headed outside at halftime stating that it was just too hard to watch. Oh, how I have looked back and wondered if things might have been different if only the Browns had been winning. I watched until the end of the 3rd quarter and decided to head out to the garage to see what he was up to. Our newly built garage was a beauty, built to house our newly acquired 5th wheel that we would be spending winters in Florida after Andy retired at the end of the school year with 35 years. I found Andy standing on the 4 foot wide shelves he had built 10 feet above his work space for storage. He was drilling holes through to the outside for the flood lights that would be mounted on the front of the garage. I busied myself in the back hanging work lights above his workbenches when I heard a small clatter and a thump. Without looking up I jokingly asked what he was doing, falling? And then I did look and saw him flat on his back on the concrete. In a panic, I straddled him, digging in his pockets looking for his cell phone because mine was in the house. At 4:10 I dialed 9-1-1. I had only called 9-1-1 once before in my life and that was just a mere 4 months earlier when I thought he had drowned in the St. Mary's river in Glacier National Park after he flipped his kayak. I'm not sure which time was worse but I knew this was serious. Within minutes after my call Andy regained consciousness, got to his feet and said he needed to go inside. "My head hurts", he said. The squad arrived about 10 minutes later and Andy calmly answered all of their questions, asked how they were doing (they were former students) and sent them on their way. As I walked them out, I showed them where he had fallen from hoping they would reconsider transporting him but in their defense Andy was lucid and had refused to go anywhere and part of me wanted to believe that he was going to be okay. They urged me to take him to the doctor on Monday as a precaution. Two hours later it became evident that waiting until Monday was not going to be an option.
Madison County Hospital
The headache was getting worse, Andy was pacing and vomiting but was still adamant that if he could only go to sleep he would be fine in the morning. I called our good friend Margeaux hoping he would listen to her and then called my brother knowing that the only way to get him to the hospital would be by force. Reasoning was not going to work. We arrived at the hospital minutes later, by now it must have been 7 o'clock. The ER doctor was wonderful and must have realized immediately the seriousness of the situation. They whisked him off for MRIs and scans and I was left to make the phone calls I had been dreading. I called Trish first. I'm not sure but Bob may have already called her because she seemed ready to spring into action making plans to come out and securing a flight for Sara as well. Next, the call to Sara. I had planned to call her earlier because it was her birthday, but she was living in Honolulu and they were 6 hours behind so I had been waiting until evening to call. Now I had to call, not with birthday greetings that I am sure she was expecting, but with news that her dad had fallen and it was serious. The ER doctor was back and telling me that they were going to transport him to OSU Medical Center. I dared to ask the "unasked" question, "how bad is it?". His reply, "just keep praying!"
And so 6 years later, we are still praying and thankful for the many blessings that have come our way over these sometimes trying years. Some things will never be the same, we have not been to Florida yet in our 5th Wheel. But we did travel to Hawaii just 8 months after the accident. We have enjoyed the birth of two granddaughters and have taken another trip to Alaska and one to Florida. I learned, what I already knew, that the little town of West Jefferson is home to the most caring people in the world. This blog was started to keep Mr. Bichler's students updated on his progress. I'm sure it was helpful to his students and the community to get first-hand and accurate information. For me, the blog was therapeutic. Because the blog was going to be read by middle school students, primarily 7th graders, I was careful to always be as positive as I could without being untruthful. There were many days that I was hard put to find anything good that had happened but it was the searching for something positive that kept me going. The blog gave all of us HOPE! I had many friends that helped in the most thoughtful ways, money for parking, snack bags to keep in the hospital room, sitting with me during surgeries, shoveling snow from my driveway and two friends that brought me supper every evening after they left work while Andy was rehabbing in Dodd Hall. Yes, we have all been blessed, with family, friends and hope! To read more, click on January 2009.
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| Andy shoveling snow with his new Kubota |
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| Andy & Evie |
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| Andy giving archery instructions |
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| Our trip last summer to the Smoky Mountains |
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| Mr. Bichler's team the year of his accident |
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| Andy was thrilled to be able to come back and coach after his accident |
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| His last team |
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| Our trip to Florida with Sharon & Betty |
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