As April turned to May, the weather warmed up, the leaves and flowers returned to their vibrant glory, and the birds were singing. Three BVHS students were enjoying a leisurely Saturday afternoon at their lake house in Louisburg. However, when their ATV ride didn’t go according to plan, instead of a fun kick-off to summer, the weekend soon became months and months of agonizing pain, surgeries, and loss.

“It was May 2, and we were in Louisburg at my friend Emily’s lake house,” junior Emma Grewe said. 

After a hot afternoon of swimming, the three girls had taken the family ATV out onto the gravel country roads. They’d been driving for some time when the driver saw “a rock or a dip in the road”.

“She swerved out of the way and got into the loose gravel,” Grewe said. “The back wheel hit the rock.”

The ATV spiraled out of control and fell onto its side. 

“The whole thing dumped,” Grewe said. “I was tossed out the left side, and my friends all landed on me.”

Slammed onto the ground, Grewe was caught under both the ATV

and her friends.

“I hit the gravel and the whole [ATV] slid,” Grewe said. “It was pretty crazy.”

As the ATV slid, it dragged Grewe and the other girls with it. Still in their swimsuits from their earlier swim, their entire bodies were exposed to the gravel. 

“I got road rash on my shoulder, my thigh, and my stomach,” Grewe said.

Not only did they get road rash from the harsh gravel roads, but because Grewe was on the bottom of the pile her foot was caught under the ATV.

“My foot was the worst part,” Grewe said. “I had to get a skin graft because the skin was all gone. Even the tendon was gone.” 

Shockingly, Grewe was aware of what was happening the entire time and never passed out.

“I was actually awake the whole time,” Grewe said. “I never went into shock and I remember all of it.  I remember hitting the ground.”

Unfortunately, her adrenaline went away just a few moments after the crash, and the pain was all too memorable.

“It’s kind of weird,” Grewe said. “I remember feeling it, but it didn’t really hurt until a couple of seconds after when I was laying there. Then everything hit at once and I felt everything.”

Stuck under the ATV, with no skin or tendons left on her foot, Grewe was left helpless.

“[My friends] called the ambulance when it first happened,” Grewe said. “I went to Children’s Mercy, and I was there for two weeks.”

From there, Grewe faced a long and painful recovery. 

“I had seven surgeries,” Grewe said. “Then, I went home for a month and was recovering. I was on crutches for a while.”

During her recovery, Grewe had many friends and family around her to offer support. 

“It wasn’t that bad, that month at home,” Grewe said. “Eventually I got off crutches and could walk again.”

Just after getting off crutches, Grewe again faced disaster.

“I went back to the hospital for a month because I got an infection in my foot,” Grewe said.

After the infection, the recovery process became even more painful.

“I had a wound vac,” Grewe said. “Which is a machine that was on my foot, and draining out everything to help it heal faster.”

Eventually, the long, grueling recovery process was over, and Grewe hoped to return to normal. However, after eight surgeries and months of not even being able to walk, even simple things became hard.

“Even just walking up the stairs makes me tired,” Grewe said.

Although she has faced countless challenges and trials, Grewe has managed to keep a positive outlook on her situation. 

“I think as cheesy as it sounds, it definitely made me stronger,” Grewe said. “Of course it sucks, but at least I’ll have a good college essay.”