By Amy Moss Strong Editor
Thursday, September 10, 2009 | 1 comment(s)
Contributed Photo by Chuck McLauchlin
Kyle Lawrence at Kigor Canyon this summer while attending Steens Mountain Running Camp with members of the Bandon High School cross country team
Bandon High School senior Kyle Lawrence continues to improve at Portland’s Legacy Emanuel Children’s Hospital after being critically injured when he was struck by a car Aug. 28 on U.S. Highway 101 near Pacific High School. He had just left soccer practice.
Although Kyle remains in a coma, he has been upgraded to stable condition, according to his mother, Jackie Lawrence.
Kyle’s cross country coach Chuck McLauchlin visited the family Friday in Portland.
“As Jackie and I were talking to him he moved his arm and hand and gave me a pretty good thumbs up,” McLauchlin said.
Kyle is breathing on his own and underwent leg surgery for broken bones last week. His leg is healing nicely, according to Lawrence.
“Kyle doesn’t need any more surgeries unless something major happens,” his mother wrote in a text message to the coach and others who are keeping up with Kyle’s progress.
Lawrence added that doctors continue to slowly take Kyle off his sedation medication and that any possible brain injuries cannot be evaluated until he wakes up.
“We had hoped he would be awake by now ... but ... we will continue to wait patiently,” she wrote.
It is still unclear exactly what happened, but when Kyle was hit, he flew up and over the vehicle, landing many feet behind it on the pavement, Lawrence said. He suffered a fractured skull, broken leg and broken thumb, a cut on his face and many abrasions.
Cross country and soccer team members made cards and sent other mementos up with the coach for Kyle. Donation cans have been placed around town for the family’s medical expenses and a fundraising dinner is planned (see box). In addition, donations are being taken at the Bandon branches of Umpqua Bank and Sterling Savings Bank.
Those interested in planning fundraising activities are asked to contact BHS Athletic Director James Freitag at 347-4414.
“The hospital staff is great and Kyle has a great team of people working on him,” McLauchlin said. “The whole family is very grateful for all of the support the community has given and continues to give. They draw a lot of strength from it.”
Cards can be sent to Kyle at Legacy Emanuel Children’s Hospital, 2801 North Gantenbein Ave., Portland, OR 97227.
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Three cheers from Vermont for your continued coverage of Kyle's accident and continued hospitalization. We appreciate your updates..very helpful, across the miles! Were we closer, we'd help at the benefit dinner tonight. Our son served on the US Coast Guard ship with Kyle's dad for several years. He and his family are special to us.
Congratulations to a team and a community that takes time to care and share and strengthen one another.
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The Bandon Western World welcomes your comments about stories, and we encourage a robust dialogue on this site. All comments must meet reasonable standards of decency and civility.
Please follow these basic rules:
- No defamatory comments about individuals or businesses.
- No deliberately false information.
- No obscenity or racially offensive language.
- No harassment, verbal abuse, threats or personal attacks.
- No information that invades another person's privacy.
- No business solicitations or charitable solicitations.
Comments that violate these standards will not be posted. Users with repeated violations may be banned from future posting.Comments will be approved throughout the day during business hours. After hours and weekend comments may not appear until the following business day. It may take a couple of hours before comments are approved.
The Bandon Western World generally does not edit comments, but we reserve the right to edit any comment that does not meet our standards.
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