ILoveMyDeafSon
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- Sep 17, 2008
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Current news here and personal...this is my son...I wanted to share because I am so happy that he is ok!
ReviewTimes.com: Fostoria and Northwest Ohio's source for news, sports, jobs, cars, homes
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Boy of Steele survives near-tragic accident
By CHANDRA NIKLEWSKI
STAFF WRITER
Moms expect to sit next to their sons while they get stitches from falling off a playground swing or taking a nasty tumble from a bicycle, but Renee Steele never expected to stand by while her son was given nearly 30 stitches after being struck by a semi truck.
For a few moments on Monday, Renee didn't know if she would ever be able to sit in her backyard and watch that same son play again. But on Thursday, only three days after an accident which could have been devastating, that is exactly what she was doing.
Renee said Monday was a normal day until not long after her 6-year-old twins, Alek and Richie, came home from school. Richie attends Longfellow Elementary School, but Alek attends a school in Findlay specifically tailored to his special needs. Alek is hearing impaired.
Renee said her sons were outside playing when Richie decided to go to his friend's house which was across the street. Because the boys know they are not allowed to cross the street without an adult, Alek went in to find his mother and tell her where his brother went.
"He didn't try to chase him across the street or anything," Renee clarified.
Renee said Alek tried to communicate with her, but her sign language skills are not as good as his. Eventually, Alek became frustrated and decided to show his mother instead.
Renee said Alek took off and down the sidewalk. She followed and said she didn't expect Alek to turn a sharp left into the street, but that is what exactly what he did.
"And because he's deaf, there's only so much screaming I can do," Renee said.
Renee watched as her son was struck by the truck on Columbus Avenue, which was going slowly because it had just come through the light at Lytle Street.
"Neighbors told me they heard the squealing of the truck stopping, but I was screaming, I didn't hear any of that," Renee remembered.
Renee said she saw the truck make contact and her son fall to the ground.
"I remember my knees buckling. I hit the ground. At the same time I was screaming and after that I was across the street. I guess I don't remember getting there, but I got there," Renee said.
By the time she got to Alek, he was trying to get up. She kept him down, though, because she was unsure of the extent of his injuries, and yelled for someone to call 911.
Renee said the impact didn't seem to bother Alek and he kept signing his brother's name and attempting to get up. The only time he cried through the ordeal was when he was being held down.
"That's why his dad and I call him Superman now," Renee said.
Alek was bleeding heavily from a six-inch gash on his head.
"I knew it was bad. If you would have just seen the split on his head. I knew it was bad and at the same time you think, 'Leave it to Alek to try and get up,'" Renee said.
Renee explained a lot of people kept telling her 911 had been called and she looked around to make sure her other three sons were OK. Her oldest, 16-year-old Randy really helped her as he ran to get a towel to stem the bleeding from Alek's head and then went to get Richie. Nine-year-old Addison was being watched over by a neighbor as the scene unfolded and Fostoria EMS arrived and Renee said she looked around to keep track of where everyone was.
"Of everything I remember, I remember one lady kept saying, 'Which ones are your kids?' like she wanted to make sure they were OK," Renee said.
Fostoria EMS transported Alek to Fostoria Community Hospital while his brothers stayed with friends and family members. Renee said she doesn't remember much about her interaction with the Fostoria firefighters.
"I'm sure people were talking to me, but everything just happens kind of in a blur and you forget things," Renee said.
Renee was waiting for her husband to arrive when the decision was made to send Alek by Life Flight to Toledo Children's Hospital. Renee called her husband, who was driving home from Holland, and he turned around and met the helicopter at the hospital while family members drove her to Toledo, Renee recalled.
Renee said Alek was conscious through the entire ordeal and had three skull fractures. One of the fractures runs close to the site for his cochlear implant, which helps him hear, so there is a long journey of doctor's appointments to make sure everything is alright or to determine if he needs a new implant.
Alek stayed in the hospital for two days, but was in the play area at the hospital by Tuesday.
"He's just awesome. The only thing that I think bothered him through the whole thing was his IV," Renee said.
Renee wants to find a way to let the truck driver know her son is fine because she imagines he feels bad about the accident.
"He did nothing wrong," Renee said of David Cecil, 30, Texas, the driver of the truck.
Alek's teacher came to visit once Alek was home and Renee said seeing her son spell and sign to his teacher was how she knew he really was OK. Now Renee closes and locks doors regularly and said she panics more easily at the thought of her children being outside, unless they are in the fenced-in backyard.
The part of the situation that was the most hurtful to the family was the gossip that spread about whether Renee was a good mother and the rumors about Alek's condition.
Renee said the family heard different stories such as Alek having a punctured lung, being in a coma and having multiple broken bones. One especially cruel rumor spread that the boy had died.
But Alek is doing what all little boys do when allowed to stay home from school. He watches television for a moment, begs for ice cream the next and shows he is unhappy when Renee tells him to be patient and she will escort him to the backyard for some play time.
Regardless of the gossip, Renee knows she is a good mother, hopes the situation that happened to her family does not happen to another and offers a warning of caution.
"No matter how much you teach your children, never once assume that they're going to stick to your rules," Renee said.
ReviewTimes.com: Fostoria and Northwest Ohio's source for news, sports, jobs, cars, homes
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Boy of Steele survives near-tragic accident
By CHANDRA NIKLEWSKI
STAFF WRITER
Moms expect to sit next to their sons while they get stitches from falling off a playground swing or taking a nasty tumble from a bicycle, but Renee Steele never expected to stand by while her son was given nearly 30 stitches after being struck by a semi truck.
For a few moments on Monday, Renee didn't know if she would ever be able to sit in her backyard and watch that same son play again. But on Thursday, only three days after an accident which could have been devastating, that is exactly what she was doing.
Renee said Monday was a normal day until not long after her 6-year-old twins, Alek and Richie, came home from school. Richie attends Longfellow Elementary School, but Alek attends a school in Findlay specifically tailored to his special needs. Alek is hearing impaired.
Renee said her sons were outside playing when Richie decided to go to his friend's house which was across the street. Because the boys know they are not allowed to cross the street without an adult, Alek went in to find his mother and tell her where his brother went.
"He didn't try to chase him across the street or anything," Renee clarified.
Renee said Alek tried to communicate with her, but her sign language skills are not as good as his. Eventually, Alek became frustrated and decided to show his mother instead.
Renee said Alek took off and down the sidewalk. She followed and said she didn't expect Alek to turn a sharp left into the street, but that is what exactly what he did.
"And because he's deaf, there's only so much screaming I can do," Renee said.
Renee watched as her son was struck by the truck on Columbus Avenue, which was going slowly because it had just come through the light at Lytle Street.
"Neighbors told me they heard the squealing of the truck stopping, but I was screaming, I didn't hear any of that," Renee remembered.
Renee said she saw the truck make contact and her son fall to the ground.
"I remember my knees buckling. I hit the ground. At the same time I was screaming and after that I was across the street. I guess I don't remember getting there, but I got there," Renee said.
By the time she got to Alek, he was trying to get up. She kept him down, though, because she was unsure of the extent of his injuries, and yelled for someone to call 911.
Renee said the impact didn't seem to bother Alek and he kept signing his brother's name and attempting to get up. The only time he cried through the ordeal was when he was being held down.
"That's why his dad and I call him Superman now," Renee said.
Alek was bleeding heavily from a six-inch gash on his head.
"I knew it was bad. If you would have just seen the split on his head. I knew it was bad and at the same time you think, 'Leave it to Alek to try and get up,'" Renee said.
Renee explained a lot of people kept telling her 911 had been called and she looked around to make sure her other three sons were OK. Her oldest, 16-year-old Randy really helped her as he ran to get a towel to stem the bleeding from Alek's head and then went to get Richie. Nine-year-old Addison was being watched over by a neighbor as the scene unfolded and Fostoria EMS arrived and Renee said she looked around to keep track of where everyone was.
"Of everything I remember, I remember one lady kept saying, 'Which ones are your kids?' like she wanted to make sure they were OK," Renee said.
Fostoria EMS transported Alek to Fostoria Community Hospital while his brothers stayed with friends and family members. Renee said she doesn't remember much about her interaction with the Fostoria firefighters.
"I'm sure people were talking to me, but everything just happens kind of in a blur and you forget things," Renee said.
Renee was waiting for her husband to arrive when the decision was made to send Alek by Life Flight to Toledo Children's Hospital. Renee called her husband, who was driving home from Holland, and he turned around and met the helicopter at the hospital while family members drove her to Toledo, Renee recalled.
Renee said Alek was conscious through the entire ordeal and had three skull fractures. One of the fractures runs close to the site for his cochlear implant, which helps him hear, so there is a long journey of doctor's appointments to make sure everything is alright or to determine if he needs a new implant.
Alek stayed in the hospital for two days, but was in the play area at the hospital by Tuesday.
"He's just awesome. The only thing that I think bothered him through the whole thing was his IV," Renee said.
Renee wants to find a way to let the truck driver know her son is fine because she imagines he feels bad about the accident.
"He did nothing wrong," Renee said of David Cecil, 30, Texas, the driver of the truck.
Alek's teacher came to visit once Alek was home and Renee said seeing her son spell and sign to his teacher was how she knew he really was OK. Now Renee closes and locks doors regularly and said she panics more easily at the thought of her children being outside, unless they are in the fenced-in backyard.
The part of the situation that was the most hurtful to the family was the gossip that spread about whether Renee was a good mother and the rumors about Alek's condition.
Renee said the family heard different stories such as Alek having a punctured lung, being in a coma and having multiple broken bones. One especially cruel rumor spread that the boy had died.
But Alek is doing what all little boys do when allowed to stay home from school. He watches television for a moment, begs for ice cream the next and shows he is unhappy when Renee tells him to be patient and she will escort him to the backyard for some play time.
Regardless of the gossip, Renee knows she is a good mother, hopes the situation that happened to her family does not happen to another and offers a warning of caution.
"No matter how much you teach your children, never once assume that they're going to stick to your rules," Renee said.
wow. he's lucky to be ok. And you're right about not assumming kids will always follow rules.
I don't remember a lot of it, except that I peed in my pants and my body hurt all over because of the hit.
