Update 4, 8/4/2012

The past few days have been long and we have been slow getting updates to Jill who has helped us by setting up this post. It would have been nearly impossible to cope without the support we have recieved from all of you. A lot has happenedin the last couple of days. One of the big steps in getting Jesse out of the critical care unit was to get him off of the respirator and breathing on his own. The respitory therapist tried a couple of times but Jesse didn't respond well. So to those of us who know Jesse it came as no surprise that around 3:00 AM Thursday he removed his respirator tube himself and began breathing on his own. He was able to talk with his nurses. At first he was a little disoriented but as the effects of the sedatives began to wear off he became more lucid. He was moved out of the critical care unit to the orthorpedic floor Friday at 9:00 PM. Erin spent Friday night with him and he is now becoming aware of what has hapened to him and his family.

He is in a lot of pain but it is mostly under control. With so many fractures in so many places it is hard to make that kind of pain go away...we still aren't sure of the exact number but it is a lot. The orthopedic Docs are optomistic that they will heal without surgery but they are still keeping a close watch on two vertabrae. His facial surgery is healing and some of the swelling is going down. Dr. Killabrew is at the top of his field and he truly did an amazing job. He has a slight fever and the risk of infection is always there but he couldn't be in better hands.

We were told at the scene of by an EMT and a trooper who knows Jesse that the hand of god must have been involved to survive this type of accident. It doesn't usually end with a suvivor let alone three others who were nearly untouched. Erin said that she knew she was being ejected from the passanger window but felt like she was being held protectively in someones hands. When I called Scott one of Jesses oldest buddies he listened to what had happened and offered up the most heart felt and touching prayer I have ever heard and at that point it had already been answered many times over. Everything that needed to happen did happen. The right doctor to deal with his facial injuries just happened to be there when Jesse needed him. The respitory tech that was there said to us that it was like seeing her own son laying there she also noticed that they had been born just a few days apart. His sister Dawn who works for Orthopedic Physcians of Alaska was able to get to the hospital at nearly the same time as the helicopter that brought him in from Willow. She made sure that the doctors were notified and on standby if needed.

So the power of prayer and positive thinking is very much appreciated. We are very thankful to all of you and we realize Jesse has so many people who really care about him.

Mike (Oz) and Barbara.