Brothers and Sisters,
I realize it's been awhile since my last entry so I wanted to update everyone on Kellie's progress. This past month has been very hectic to say the least for Kellie and me. It has been a month filled with emotional and physical ups and downs. I have wanted to post regularly but have not found the time to do so. I am so thankful for the loving friends and family which God has surrounded us with. Sofia, Teenie, Josh, and Jeannette have been doing an amazing job with posting updates through www.teamkellie.weebly.com . As we have been progressing with Kellie's recovery I have experienced a surge of emotions I cannot begin to describe. Weeks after the accident were truly spent on emotional prayer and constant cries to God. I think my older brother, Loren, said it the best when he mentioned that this process is “going to be a marathon not a sprint.” When I read this statement that he made I really began to realize how not only are we to exercise our faith and trust throughout this situation, but also our patience. God is truly working on Kellie and all of us but we must remain faithful and patient as he heals Kellie.I wanted to post updates day by day originally but never got around to it. I will try my best and give a recap of the previous weeks up until now.There were many time when I wanted to question God and resent him but I quickly realized how thankful I was that my little brother, Chris, and Kellie still had breath in their lungs! The timing and exact location of the accident was evidence in itself that God was in control. The accident happened on south bound IH-35. The SUV which my brother and Kellie were riding in had a tire blow out as they veered from the far left lane to the shoulder. This sudden change in direction caused the car to flip violently turning end over end around five times until winding up up-right in a ditch. The fact that the car landed up-right in a ditch was a true sign of God’s control. To the right of the highway a hundred yards prior to the blow out there was a high overpass (bridge), scattered trees and then a continuous row of trees lining the road. Right when the trees ended was where the tire blew out and the car began veering to the right. If this had happened any earlier there is no telling the extent of the injuries which may have occurred. The car may have rolled off the bridge, or even hit a tree. But this didn’t happen, and for that I am ever so grateful! Thank you God for your grace and your protection! As sinful humans we truly deserve nothing but HE has provided more than enough!As I mentioned, days following the accident were
spent on adrenaline and emotional prayer. I was so thankful to see the progress made in that short period exceed all expectations of the hospital staff. After all the surgeries were performed we were thankful that Kellie was stable and improving day by day. The doctor’s original prognosis was that Kellie would be a C5 Quadriplegic. When I heard this news I threw a tantrum like a little kid. I cried and I yelled until my throat was dry and in pain. I cried until I had nothing left. I said to God “you now have all of me! What more do you want.”
After I regained my composure I had to remind myself that people die every day in the hospital. Who was I to act this way when doctors and nurses see death inundate their room’s day in and day out? I had to constantly remind myself how appreciative I was that God had spared my brother and Kellie’s lives. I told the doctors and everyone around me that I refused to believe their prognosis! God has the power to heal and I truly believe that he will fully heal Kellie! We must all sincerely pray for these things. Since this original prognosis Kellie has regained a lot of motion in her arms and sensation throughout her body. Though these improvements seem minute, I thank God for every little improvement. During her time in ICU Kellie became more than a “patient” to all the hospital staff. Nurses would specifically request Kellie as their patient. When they didn’t receive her as a patient they would still come by to check on her and to see how she was doing. Seeing the way Kellie affected those that entered her room really touched my heart. God was always by her side and his presence filled her room! Throughout her stay in ICU letters began pouring in from all over the country and even across the world. Many of these letters began with the words “Kellie, you don’t know me but…” It was amazing seeing all of God’s children unite as one body to support Kellie. It made me truly realize how we are to gather together in community when a member of the church is going through times of suffering. One Sunday morning we listened to a podcast and the pastor who was speaking spoke of this exact situation. Often times when a member of the body goes through times of suffering one tends to withdraw from fellowship and isolate themselves. This is exactly what the enemy wants us to do. Because when one is in isolation it is easy to doubt God’s magnificent power. It is easy to forget how we are to trust God in every aspect of our lives, especially when we are going through times of suffering. I thank God for surrounding us with HIS love and HIS faithful followers as they gathered around Kellie in support and encouragement during her most dreadful time of suffering. It was amazing to me to see Kellie’s faith prosper through all this. One day in ICU she had stated “My bones are shattered, my body is bruised, and I am physically broken! But I have never been in a better place in my life [spiritually speaking] than I am right now.” Right when I heard these words I began to tear up and realized how much God loved her. He was using this “tragedy” to draw us closer to him. He truly uses our times of suffering to release us from the shackles of this world. Days began to run together as I spent night after night at Kellie’s bedside. She had to be re-adjusted every two hours and neither of us really got a good night’s rest immediately following the accident. During this time I had used up pretty much most of my “paid time off” at the office and was dreading the day I had to return. Not only was I dreading returning to the office so was Kellie. She had looked at me with deep concern many times during those weeks and said to me “Please don’t leave me.” She would say this after I or someone would mention me returning to work but I knew that she didn’t mean “leave her” to return for work--Upon returning to the office for a few days I began to wonder what the future had in store for us in regards to our relationship. I have had multiple shoulder surgeries in the past and during my recovery process Kellie was always by my side. She took care of me with her tender care and loved me as if I was her child. I knew that no matter what Kellie would always be by my side. If the roles were reversed I was confident in knowing that she would stay by my side no matter the extent of my injuries. I prayed hard during that week and asked that God would reveal his plans for me and for us as a couple. During that week I began to realize how God has always wanted us to love the way he loves us. We are to love one another unconditionally no matter what the situation may be. He doesn’t love us based off of any human measurement. He doesn’t judge or love us based on our accomplishments, our beauty, our abilities, our bank accounts, our talents or any of our accolades. The way he loves us no matter how ugly and sinful we can be really began to resonate with me. When I truly examine myself, my desires and my motivations I began to see how ugly and sinful my heart really is. Every time I chase my own desires rather than pursue his glory I am spitting in his face. I am saying “thank you God for your love but I’m going to do what pleases me.” I knowingly do this time after time and no matter how ugly these sins are to HIM, HE still loves me. I was awestruck by this unconditional love that was brought to light during all this. I began to see how we were called to love the way HE loved us first.
In all honesty this is not the easiest thing to do at times. But because of the situation that was presented to me I wanted to do what I knew God was calling me to do. I also wanted Kellie to know that through thick and thin I was going to be by her side. Whether or not I was going to leave her was not something I wanted her to have to worry about during this process of healing and recovery.
After nights of long hard prayer I came to the conclusion that I was going to purpose to Kellie. I felt lead to do those not only because of my love for Kellie but also as a testimony to parallel the love of our heavenly father. I knew that through this God would work in us and use us in amazing ways to magnify HIS glory and not our own. Friday April 22, 2011, which happened to be “Good Friday” I decided was going to be the day. I did not even have an engagement ring picked out yet but I knew what I wanted to do. That morning I sent a text to Scott Polk, a family friend, who works in the jewelry industry to see if I could arrange a time for me to come by his shop to pick out a ring. I was weary at first as to whether or not I would even be able to obtain a ring in such short notice. Not only that, but it was also “Good Friday” and I didn’t even know if his store would be open. Well to my surprise Scott opened his shop to me even though they were closed just because he had heard about Kellie’s story and wanted to help. We picked out a band, chose a diamond and he called in a jeweler to set my ring on within a few hours. On top of all that, he knew I was trying to make it down to Austin from Dallas that night so he personally delivered the ring to my office before I got off work. It was amazing to see God help me with every little detail allowing me to see how HE can handle even the smallest details in everyday life. When I had mentioned my engagement to a co-worker she briefly mentioned that I should wait till Kellie was out of ICU. I thought to myself “this was unnecessary and shouldn’t really matter.” After confirming my plans with my Mom and my Dad they both suggested that I also should wait till she got out of ICU. Once again though, I brushed off these suggestions and was ready to do what I had already concluded in my head. Little did I know, God was setting the tempo and once again showing us the entirety of HIS control.After getting to the hospital I quickly realized how ironic God was. I was redirected to another room on the 5th floor where I had found out Kellie had been moved out of ICU that very day! This really touched me because in the past I felt as if I picked and chose which aspects of my life I wanted to hand over to God and which aspects I thought I could handle on my own. This was just another thing that God was reinforcing in my faith to completely surrender to HIM.“This was just too perfect” I thought to myself. As I got to the hospital all of Kellies friends were present. I hadn’t even mentioned my plans to them yet God brought them all there at the perfect time. My family even made the trip from Dallas to take part in this huge moment. I had the nurse present the ring to her room with a card as if it were just one of many cards being delivered to her room. After that… well after that everyone pretty much knew what was going on. You can see for yourself how nervous I was on the video link below; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoDF9BtLDrE The day we were discharged from the hospital was very difficult for Kellie. Kellie really became more than a “patient” to the hospital staff. As I previously mentioned nurses and therapists would come in to check on her even if they weren’t required to. The volunteers began to know Kellie as the girl that received an unusual amount of cards, flowers, and gifts. They were making regular visits to her room to deliver these items. This unusual care was more than evident the day we had to leave the hospital. When she was getting ready to be transported an unexpected number of nurses and therapist (20+ hospital staff members) gathered around her to hug and kiss Kellie, and to say their goodbyes. The EMT’s who were transferring her asked Kellie in astonishment, “Umm…How long have you been here??” They said in all their years of working, they have never seen a farewell like that to a patient leaving the hospital. We were touched by the caring, and loving support of all the hospital staff members at Seton Williamson hospital in Round Rock, Texas.After being discharged from the hospital Kellie spent a quick two weeks at an in-patient rehab center in Austin, Texas, called Central Texas Rehab. We were very lucky to have a rehab facility accept her through their charity funded program as Kellie has no insurance. During our two weeks we made new friends with hospital staff and received a very touching letter from Jennifer Darmon a girl whose story closely parallels that of Kellie’s.
Sofia made a very detailed post about this night through the “caring bridge” website ( Please see http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/kelliemandley for more details). Though we were very thankful for the time and services provided at Central Texas Rehab, two weeks is really not adequate time for any patient with spinal cord injuries and paralysis like Kellie’s injury. Her time was very fruitful and we saw improvements each day but we have been praying for something more. We need to get her back into in-patient care at a specialized spinal cord injury facility that can help Kellie with her progress towards recovery.Currently Kellie is staying at Jeanette’s house, her best friend’s mom. Jeanette has been very gracious as to offer her home so that Kellie’s family, friends, and loved ones could all come together and assist Kellie in a loving, positive, and encouraging environment. All through this incident God’s finger prints have been evident. I am ever thankful in the way he has provided HIS love through the support of family and friends. People from all over have been helping out in every way they can and it has been such a blessing! I apologize for the lengthy update but as I said I have wanted to give updates day by day but have not found the time or energy to do so. I want to give a huge THANKS to the amazing support of friends and family who have posted updates regularly online. Please follow our continuous updates through www.teamkellie.weebly.com. I am so grateful for all those who have helped me and Kellie throughout this “tragic accident.”
I put quotations around tragic because through all this Kellie and I have never been closer to our loving father in heaven. We thank him every day for allowing us to suffer in HIS name so that we may know him better. Through this we have been drawn closer to HIM and so many blessing have been revealed through it all. Once again, I love and THANK you all! In HIS Grip! One Love!
I realize it's been awhile since my last entry so I wanted to update everyone on Kellie's progress. This past month has been very hectic to say the least for Kellie and me. It has been a month filled with emotional and physical ups and downs. I have wanted to post regularly but have not found the time to do so. I am so thankful for the loving friends and family which God has surrounded us with. Sofia, Teenie, Josh, and Jeannette have been doing an amazing job with posting updates through www.teamkellie.weebly.com . As we have been progressing with Kellie's recovery I have experienced a surge of emotions I cannot begin to describe. Weeks after the accident were truly spent on emotional prayer and constant cries to God. I think my older brother, Loren, said it the best when he mentioned that this process is “going to be a marathon not a sprint.” When I read this statement that he made I really began to realize how not only are we to exercise our faith and trust throughout this situation, but also our patience. God is truly working on Kellie and all of us but we must remain faithful and patient as he heals Kellie.I wanted to post updates day by day originally but never got around to it. I will try my best and give a recap of the previous weeks up until now.There were many time when I wanted to question God and resent him but I quickly realized how thankful I was that my little brother, Chris, and Kellie still had breath in their lungs! The timing and exact location of the accident was evidence in itself that God was in control. The accident happened on south bound IH-35. The SUV which my brother and Kellie were riding in had a tire blow out as they veered from the far left lane to the shoulder. This sudden change in direction caused the car to flip violently turning end over end around five times until winding up up-right in a ditch. The fact that the car landed up-right in a ditch was a true sign of God’s control. To the right of the highway a hundred yards prior to the blow out there was a high overpass (bridge), scattered trees and then a continuous row of trees lining the road. Right when the trees ended was where the tire blew out and the car began veering to the right. If this had happened any earlier there is no telling the extent of the injuries which may have occurred. The car may have rolled off the bridge, or even hit a tree. But this didn’t happen, and for that I am ever so grateful! Thank you God for your grace and your protection! As sinful humans we truly deserve nothing but HE has provided more than enough!As I mentioned, days following the accident were
spent on adrenaline and emotional prayer. I was so thankful to see the progress made in that short period exceed all expectations of the hospital staff. After all the surgeries were performed we were thankful that Kellie was stable and improving day by day. The doctor’s original prognosis was that Kellie would be a C5 Quadriplegic. When I heard this news I threw a tantrum like a little kid. I cried and I yelled until my throat was dry and in pain. I cried until I had nothing left. I said to God “you now have all of me! What more do you want.”
After I regained my composure I had to remind myself that people die every day in the hospital. Who was I to act this way when doctors and nurses see death inundate their room’s day in and day out? I had to constantly remind myself how appreciative I was that God had spared my brother and Kellie’s lives. I told the doctors and everyone around me that I refused to believe their prognosis! God has the power to heal and I truly believe that he will fully heal Kellie! We must all sincerely pray for these things. Since this original prognosis Kellie has regained a lot of motion in her arms and sensation throughout her body. Though these improvements seem minute, I thank God for every little improvement. During her time in ICU Kellie became more than a “patient” to all the hospital staff. Nurses would specifically request Kellie as their patient. When they didn’t receive her as a patient they would still come by to check on her and to see how she was doing. Seeing the way Kellie affected those that entered her room really touched my heart. God was always by her side and his presence filled her room! Throughout her stay in ICU letters began pouring in from all over the country and even across the world. Many of these letters began with the words “Kellie, you don’t know me but…” It was amazing seeing all of God’s children unite as one body to support Kellie. It made me truly realize how we are to gather together in community when a member of the church is going through times of suffering. One Sunday morning we listened to a podcast and the pastor who was speaking spoke of this exact situation. Often times when a member of the body goes through times of suffering one tends to withdraw from fellowship and isolate themselves. This is exactly what the enemy wants us to do. Because when one is in isolation it is easy to doubt God’s magnificent power. It is easy to forget how we are to trust God in every aspect of our lives, especially when we are going through times of suffering. I thank God for surrounding us with HIS love and HIS faithful followers as they gathered around Kellie in support and encouragement during her most dreadful time of suffering. It was amazing to me to see Kellie’s faith prosper through all this. One day in ICU she had stated “My bones are shattered, my body is bruised, and I am physically broken! But I have never been in a better place in my life [spiritually speaking] than I am right now.” Right when I heard these words I began to tear up and realized how much God loved her. He was using this “tragedy” to draw us closer to him. He truly uses our times of suffering to release us from the shackles of this world. Days began to run together as I spent night after night at Kellie’s bedside. She had to be re-adjusted every two hours and neither of us really got a good night’s rest immediately following the accident. During this time I had used up pretty much most of my “paid time off” at the office and was dreading the day I had to return. Not only was I dreading returning to the office so was Kellie. She had looked at me with deep concern many times during those weeks and said to me “Please don’t leave me.” She would say this after I or someone would mention me returning to work but I knew that she didn’t mean “leave her” to return for work--Upon returning to the office for a few days I began to wonder what the future had in store for us in regards to our relationship. I have had multiple shoulder surgeries in the past and during my recovery process Kellie was always by my side. She took care of me with her tender care and loved me as if I was her child. I knew that no matter what Kellie would always be by my side. If the roles were reversed I was confident in knowing that she would stay by my side no matter the extent of my injuries. I prayed hard during that week and asked that God would reveal his plans for me and for us as a couple. During that week I began to realize how God has always wanted us to love the way he loves us. We are to love one another unconditionally no matter what the situation may be. He doesn’t love us based off of any human measurement. He doesn’t judge or love us based on our accomplishments, our beauty, our abilities, our bank accounts, our talents or any of our accolades. The way he loves us no matter how ugly and sinful we can be really began to resonate with me. When I truly examine myself, my desires and my motivations I began to see how ugly and sinful my heart really is. Every time I chase my own desires rather than pursue his glory I am spitting in his face. I am saying “thank you God for your love but I’m going to do what pleases me.” I knowingly do this time after time and no matter how ugly these sins are to HIM, HE still loves me. I was awestruck by this unconditional love that was brought to light during all this. I began to see how we were called to love the way HE loved us first.
In all honesty this is not the easiest thing to do at times. But because of the situation that was presented to me I wanted to do what I knew God was calling me to do. I also wanted Kellie to know that through thick and thin I was going to be by her side. Whether or not I was going to leave her was not something I wanted her to have to worry about during this process of healing and recovery.
After nights of long hard prayer I came to the conclusion that I was going to purpose to Kellie. I felt lead to do those not only because of my love for Kellie but also as a testimony to parallel the love of our heavenly father. I knew that through this God would work in us and use us in amazing ways to magnify HIS glory and not our own. Friday April 22, 2011, which happened to be “Good Friday” I decided was going to be the day. I did not even have an engagement ring picked out yet but I knew what I wanted to do. That morning I sent a text to Scott Polk, a family friend, who works in the jewelry industry to see if I could arrange a time for me to come by his shop to pick out a ring. I was weary at first as to whether or not I would even be able to obtain a ring in such short notice. Not only that, but it was also “Good Friday” and I didn’t even know if his store would be open. Well to my surprise Scott opened his shop to me even though they were closed just because he had heard about Kellie’s story and wanted to help. We picked out a band, chose a diamond and he called in a jeweler to set my ring on within a few hours. On top of all that, he knew I was trying to make it down to Austin from Dallas that night so he personally delivered the ring to my office before I got off work. It was amazing to see God help me with every little detail allowing me to see how HE can handle even the smallest details in everyday life. When I had mentioned my engagement to a co-worker she briefly mentioned that I should wait till Kellie was out of ICU. I thought to myself “this was unnecessary and shouldn’t really matter.” After confirming my plans with my Mom and my Dad they both suggested that I also should wait till she got out of ICU. Once again though, I brushed off these suggestions and was ready to do what I had already concluded in my head. Little did I know, God was setting the tempo and once again showing us the entirety of HIS control.After getting to the hospital I quickly realized how ironic God was. I was redirected to another room on the 5th floor where I had found out Kellie had been moved out of ICU that very day! This really touched me because in the past I felt as if I picked and chose which aspects of my life I wanted to hand over to God and which aspects I thought I could handle on my own. This was just another thing that God was reinforcing in my faith to completely surrender to HIM.“This was just too perfect” I thought to myself. As I got to the hospital all of Kellies friends were present. I hadn’t even mentioned my plans to them yet God brought them all there at the perfect time. My family even made the trip from Dallas to take part in this huge moment. I had the nurse present the ring to her room with a card as if it were just one of many cards being delivered to her room. After that… well after that everyone pretty much knew what was going on. You can see for yourself how nervous I was on the video link below; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoDF9BtLDrE The day we were discharged from the hospital was very difficult for Kellie. Kellie really became more than a “patient” to the hospital staff. As I previously mentioned nurses and therapists would come in to check on her even if they weren’t required to. The volunteers began to know Kellie as the girl that received an unusual amount of cards, flowers, and gifts. They were making regular visits to her room to deliver these items. This unusual care was more than evident the day we had to leave the hospital. When she was getting ready to be transported an unexpected number of nurses and therapist (20+ hospital staff members) gathered around her to hug and kiss Kellie, and to say their goodbyes. The EMT’s who were transferring her asked Kellie in astonishment, “Umm…How long have you been here??” They said in all their years of working, they have never seen a farewell like that to a patient leaving the hospital. We were touched by the caring, and loving support of all the hospital staff members at Seton Williamson hospital in Round Rock, Texas.After being discharged from the hospital Kellie spent a quick two weeks at an in-patient rehab center in Austin, Texas, called Central Texas Rehab. We were very lucky to have a rehab facility accept her through their charity funded program as Kellie has no insurance. During our two weeks we made new friends with hospital staff and received a very touching letter from Jennifer Darmon a girl whose story closely parallels that of Kellie’s.
Sofia made a very detailed post about this night through the “caring bridge” website ( Please see http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/kelliemandley for more details). Though we were very thankful for the time and services provided at Central Texas Rehab, two weeks is really not adequate time for any patient with spinal cord injuries and paralysis like Kellie’s injury. Her time was very fruitful and we saw improvements each day but we have been praying for something more. We need to get her back into in-patient care at a specialized spinal cord injury facility that can help Kellie with her progress towards recovery.Currently Kellie is staying at Jeanette’s house, her best friend’s mom. Jeanette has been very gracious as to offer her home so that Kellie’s family, friends, and loved ones could all come together and assist Kellie in a loving, positive, and encouraging environment. All through this incident God’s finger prints have been evident. I am ever thankful in the way he has provided HIS love through the support of family and friends. People from all over have been helping out in every way they can and it has been such a blessing! I apologize for the lengthy update but as I said I have wanted to give updates day by day but have not found the time or energy to do so. I want to give a huge THANKS to the amazing support of friends and family who have posted updates regularly online. Please follow our continuous updates through www.teamkellie.weebly.com. I am so grateful for all those who have helped me and Kellie throughout this “tragic accident.”
I put quotations around tragic because through all this Kellie and I have never been closer to our loving father in heaven. We thank him every day for allowing us to suffer in HIS name so that we may know him better. Through this we have been drawn closer to HIM and so many blessing have been revealed through it all. Once again, I love and THANK you all! In HIS Grip! One Love!