Deyondrah’s Long Road to Recovery
By Erin Vanderberg, Editor
On February 27, Deyondrah Bridgeman, who lives in Mayfair with her mother, Eriana McLaughlin, and her younger sister, Janice, was struck in the crosswalk at Colfax and Esplanade on her way to East High School by a driver who had run the red light at over 40 miles an hour – and kept going.
When she was hit, there were no broken bones, instead Dee’s head sustained the brunt of the impact when it hit the hood of the car. In the immediate aftermath at Denver Health’s Intensive Care Unit, Dee’s life hung in the balance when her lung collapsed. Her traumatic brain injury was compounded by a bleeding contusion and a skull fracture.
She spent three and a half weeks – and her 17th birthday – in the Denver Health ICU. At the three week mark, she started slowly coming off of life support machines so that she could be transported to Children’s Hospital. She has been there ever since.
Her mother started to tell coworkers, members of the East community, friends and family that Dee was doing well, but then she realized that she had to qualify that statement. To describe how Dee is doing, she now puts it this way:
“It’s like having a 17-year-old infant – she’s not walking, not talking and she can’t roll over.”
These days, though, Dee is steadily more conscious throughout the day.
“She’s wanting to be up, and wanting to see,” said Eriana. “Before it was a blank stare, like she was looking through you.”
According to Eriana, the hospital has set the next goal date for May 23, where her family and the doctors will meet to discuss Dee’s progress and next steps. Dee is working with physical and speech therapists, and rehabilitation specialists every day. In a week or so, she will undergo surgery to repair a fractured eye socket.
Eriana describes Dee as a shy young woman who writes poetry and aspires to be a counselor.
“When she first heard that there were 2,300 students at East High School, it made her feel like she would pass out,” said Eriana.
East A+ Angels Mentoring Program is designed for students like Dee, so they feel supported and don’t get lost in the crowd. Dee was partnered with Park Hill resident Marti Freeman her freshman year, and the two have been getting together ever since.
“She is a very hard worker, she’s always been happy and eager, she has lots of friends, and a good relationship with her mom, her sister and her family,” said Marti. “Her mom has worked so hard to give her daughters more than she had.”
Marti helped Dee get into a Red Cross babysitting class, and advertised her name to the Park Hill Parents Group Meetup group, where Dee met Alisa Wood and began babysitting for her son.
“I adore her … my son adores her,” said Alisa. “She has a sweet smile, she worked hard to do well in her classes and she is great with my son. Visiting her was heartbreaking and inspiring; inspiring because she has made really good progress, heartbreaking because she has a long road ahead of her.”
This year, Dee was enrolled in a creative writing class that she loved. As a junior, her mother and her were starting to work on the college plan, looking into courses that Dee could take in her senior year while studying at East. All the career paths Dee ever spoke of involved helping people.
“Dee would do anything to help people, because that’s the type of personality she is,” said her mother.
At Eriana’s workplace, Costco, where she has worked in the receiving department for the past 14 years, Eriana’s coworkers have helped her to spend more time with Dee by donating their vacation time to her. Dee’s grandfather comes down from Longmont, and her grandmother flew in from Arkansas the evening of the accident and has been here since.
Dee’s family has attended the preliminary court cases, but no details have come forth yet about why driver Erin Jackson ran the red light, fled the scene of the accident and turned herself in to authorities early the next morning.
Jackson’s car insurance has covered $100,000 of the hospital bills, and Eriana is using supplemental insurance toward copays and bills. Dee also qualifies for underinsured motorist coverage, and the family will also use Eriana’s car and health insurance.
Back at the Mclaughin-Bridgeman home, Dee’s sister misses her best friend and roommate, says their mother. The family works together to stagger their visits to Dee throughout the day. Dee’s mother works from 5 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., then picks up Dee’s sister from Hill Middle School and heads to Children’s Hospital around 2 p.m., where they stay and visit for a few hours. Then, Dee’s grandparents take the evening shift, so that Dee’s sister can do her homework and get to bed at a decent hour.
Marti also visits once a week. She says that while Dee cannot speak, it is clear that her rehabilitation is frustrating and emotional for her – and it’s hard to see.
According to Eriana, the doctors are not making determinations about whether Dee will make a full recovery. They have told the family that it will take Dee a couple of years to complete the rehabilitation.
“We’re slowly getting better and understanding that it will be a while,” said Eriana. “It changed our life, and we’re finally accepting that. In the beginning, we thought, ‘OK, she’s really banged up, but she’ll come home soon.’ Once she got to Children’s, we’ve had reality check after reality check.”
How to Help
Send a donation via post:
Eriana McLaughlin
P.O. Box 200194
Denver, CO 80220
Checks can be made to Deyondrah Bridgeman
Make a deposit at Wells Fargo:
Ask the teller to route your deposit to Deyondrah Bridgeman’s account. Her name is unique to Colorado, so her birthday is generally not required. It is 3/12/96 if they ask.
Donate blood at Bonfils:
East High School is holding a blood drive May 6-7, but each day is limited to 40 people. Visit any Bonfils site and make a blood donation in her name under the A465 account. Visit bonfils.org for locations.