MOUNT VERNON — There is good news to report from Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney, Neb., where the Pete Smith family has been recovering from an RV accident on July 10.
“Will continues to get better with small improvements daily,” said his father, Pete. Nurses in the intensive care unit report marked improvement after seeing him on intermittent visits, not every day as family members do. Two poodles used as therapy dogs were brought to his bedside on Thursday.
“That was all positive,” said Pete. “The tactile thing with him touching them was encouraging. Will is a dog lover. And he really tracked them with his eyes.”
Doctors are to make an assessment on Saturday with plans to transport Will to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus. “He’s not quite ready for rehab as he is in a recovery stage,” said Pete. “I consider this a faith-based miracle here with his improvement.
“Linda is getting around a lot better,” according to Pete, stating that she has been using an elliptical machine in rehab.
“We’ve been receiving really loving care from the community here. It’s going to be hard to leave,” said Pete of the family’s stay in Kearney. “The level of support we have received from the Mount Vernon and Gambier area has really been heartwarming. We’re sort of at a loss for words.”
