My spirit was broken and I knew
it was time to rebuild. Tami and I were married the thirteenth day I was in Harborview, with just immediate family and close friends by our side. It would be another week and a half before I left the hospital and returned home to the welcoming community I had humbly once served. The motorcade stretched over miles. For the next year and a half my
Following a long recovery, Earl and Tami had a big summer wedding and Earl was able to dance with his bride.
the adrenaline dumping into my body, as I knew this was my only chance. This was my only hope so I began
yelling as loud as I could. With every scream, with every breath, the pain became more excruciating, but I knew I had to keep going in order to live. The poplar trees, acting as a windbreak for the orchard, now acted as a megaphone as my voice echoed off them. The man who heard my screams called 911 and came to my aid. He was a fellow out- doorsman with amazing courage to look for me, placing himself in harm’s way to save a life. I was transported 30 miles to the
nearest hospital capable of performing the life-saving surgery I desperately needed. As I arrived at the hospital my parents and fi ancée, Tami, were brought in to say a tearful greeting before I was wheeled into surgery. We spoke for only a few moments, and at the time it was all that mattered to me in the world. While I was in surgery the man
responsible was arrested, and some details started to emerge. The Wash-
ington Department of Fish and Game had issued some damage deer tags in the area where I chose to hunt coyotes. I was unaware the damage hunts went into the second week of November. However, the man who shot me actu- ally did not have a tag because he was a felon convicted several years before for delivering narcotics. As the hospital waiting room fi lled
with friends and family, I was in surgery several hours. It required 13 units of blood and highly skilled professionals to save my life. Such people as these we depend upon in our time of need. The next day I was fl own by a jet
to Harborview Medical Center, one of Washington's top trauma hospitals, to endure three days of surgery to repair my lower back. After the surgeries a couple of doctors came in to speak with me. They were there to inform me I would never run again. I was going from being a standout soccer player in college to knowing I would not return to my duties as a beat cop on the street with a partially paralyzed right leg.
wife was my live-in nurse. She was there for me at every turn, and it was taxing for both of us, to say the least. She was there as I began my long road of recovery. At the beginning I had a walker and would be wheeled around in a wheelchair with a child-like depen- dence on others. As time would pass and my strength began to return I was able to move to crutches. During my time on the crutches I had two additional opera- tions. Then I was introduced to being in a pool and having physical therapy fi ve days a week. At the end of each ses- sion I was physically and emotionally exhausted. As more time went by I was allowed to walk with only one crutch. Awhile later I was taught to walk with- out the aid of any assistance. All of this occurred slowly over
about a year and a half. During the time I used two crutches Tami and I had a big summer wedding on the day we had initially planned on getting married – June 7, 2008. My dreams and my prayers were granted, and I was able to dance as I had imagined that day in the snow. I have returned to hunting coyotes
again, but never without a hunting partner. My injury also has opened up the outdoors in ways I never would have imagined. I also have taken up fl y fi shing, learning the art recently in the majestic Bitterroot Valley of Montana. It has been diffi cult to fi nd a job as
much fun and as rewarding as being a deputy. My incident has somehow taken away any fear of public speaking so I have substitute taught K-12 and liked my experiences. I truly enjoy it and I look forward to continuing to speak to youngsters and adults and young hunters about both my experience and how I was able to deal with adversity. Currently I am scheduled to give a pre- sentation on “Hope” this summer at a conference.
Page 152 October — December 2011
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