"Around 10:30 p.m. Ralph Avers was growing tired of driving. He and his daughter, Kay Loy, were approaching the city limits of Lawton, Oklahoma. Ralph Avers noticed that there was a café just up ahead so he began to slow down and turned on his right turn signal. As Ralph and his daughter, Kay Loy were approaching the entrance to the café, Ralph noticed that there were bright lights from another vehicle in his rearview mirror charging towards them and the car wasn't slowing down. Before Ralph could turn into the entrance of the café the vehicle behind them plowed straight into the back of their vehicle. Both Kay Loy and Ralph felt the horrific impact...As the car collided into them from behind, Kay Loy was thrown forward nearly going through the passenger's front window. The crash must have caused Kay Loy to slam her head into the window because she became unconscious. Kay Loy awoke to the groaning of her father who was still seated next to her in the driver's side of the car. When both Ralph and Kay Loy became fully coherent, they both asked if each other was alright. Though both of them were obviously shaken and frightened they determined that neither of their injuries were life-threatening. Their next concern was for the driver who had just rear-ended them. Both Ralph and Kay Loy got out of their car and went to check on the driver of the other vehicle. When they approached the car they saw the driver's head hanging over the steering wheel, motionless. They immediately thought that the driver was dead. Ralph began to frantically knock on the window of the car. Kay Loy saw that the driver was a young man who was alone in the car. After Ralph continued to bang on the car window the young man finally heard them and gradually opened up his car door and stumbled out of the door attempting to stand up. The smell of alcohol enveloped all around them and the young man's breath wreaked of alcohol. It was quite apparent, Ralph and Kay Loy had just been hit by a drunk driver...
Shortly after the accident, the Lawton city police arrived and assessed that the young man was extremely drunk and that he had crashed into Ralph and Kay Loy's car going 80 mph. Although Ralph and Kay Loy's car was severely damaged from behind it was still able to be driven. So after giving the police all the necessary information, Ralph and Kay Loy both thought they were alright and did not need to go to the hospital. In spite of their "minor" injuries Ralph decided he and Kay Loy would continue to their destination of Carlsbad, New Mexico....Many hours passed by as Ralph continued to drive from Oklahoma to Carlsbad. Kay Loy had fallen asleep during the remainder of the drive. As Ralph and his daughter, Kay Loy, arrived in Carlsbad the next morning, Kay Loy became more alert and realized that she had an extremely stiff neck, a horrible headache and a horrific pain in her lower back as well as both of her legs were numb.
Ralph and Kay Loy were supposed to spend several days in Carlsbad visiting family and they were to pick up Ralph's wife, Edna who was visiting her mother's house. As they arrived to their destination, Kay Loy confessed to her father that she was in pain and explained her symptoms to him. Because of Kay Loy's condition, they all felt it was best to just spend the night with family and return back home to Okmulgee, Oklahoma the next day. Their plan was to return to Okmulgee and then take Kay Loy to see their family doctor. Kay Loy kept reassuring her parents that she was alright and could wait until they returned back home before she went to a doctor....
The next morning Ralph, Kay Loy and Edna, Kay Loy's mother, all left Carlsbad and started the long drive back to Okmulgee. Although Kay Loy could stretch out in the back seat of the vehicle, the trip was very long and her pain was increasing. Not only was her pain increasing, but so was the numbness in her legs.
When the three of them finally arrived in Okmulgee, they immediately went to their local doctor. By the time they arrived at the doctor's office, a full 48 hours had already passed since the accident. The local doctor took an x-ray of Kay Loy's spine. After the results were in, the doctor came back in to the examining room where the three of them were waiting. The doctor said in a very loud voice, "Please do not move an inch." The three of them were all startled by the doctor's voice and by his command to "not move an inch." The doctor then immediately came over to Kay Loy and put an iron back brace around her. The local doctor then told them that they had to immediately drive to Tulsa to see an orthopedic surgeon. They could not go home; they had to go to Tulsa right away.
After arriving in Tulsa, Ralph took Kay Loy to four different physicians who all examined Kay Loy and they all came to the same conclusion and had the same diagnosis. The doctors shared with Ralph, Edna and Kay Loy that the impact of the accident had caused Kay Loy's spine to be crushed from the waist down. Not only was her spine crushed, but there were bone fragments that were floating around her spine. The specialists could not believe that Kay Loy had first of all survived the crash, but secondly couldn't believe she was still alive as one slight movement could kill her instantly because of the floating bone fragments. As Kay Loy shared with me, "This was God's first miracle He performed on me; I was still alive."
Because of the severity of her injuries, Kay Loy was immediately admitted to the hospital and was scheduled for surgery the next morning. The pain, fear and the unknown must have been incredible for her. Though because of her faith, Kay Loy trusted that God was in control and that He would see her through this. Kay Loy said "I experienced the faithfulness of my Lord by my side."…
The surgeon came into Kay Loy's hospital room after the surgery and shared the prognosis to her parents. The words he spoke were the words that would forever change the lives of all three of them. The surgeon explained that because of the damage to the spinal cord, the nerves in that area were damaged beyond repair. "I'm sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Avers, but your daughter, Kay Loy will never walk again. Kay Loy's kidneys and bowels will more than likely never function properly again and she will not be able to control them. So, she will probably have a collection bag hanging from her wheelchair for the rest of her life." This was now Kay Loy's fate. She would be bound to a wheelchair for the rest of her life."