McNally Strong— Edwards Road to Recovery
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Edward McNally. My dad. My very first best friend. My rock. My drawing buddy. My movie watching partner. My absolute biggest fan.
January 31st, 2019. That’s the day that my world turned upside down and I didn’t even know it yet.
———
For those of you that don’t know— my dad, and very best friend, was a passenger in a vehicle that was involved in a head on collision that nearly took his life.
Despite all he has been through, my dad always pushes forward and finds the brightest part of any dark situation. That’s one quality that I found myself begging to understand over the last few weeks. I noticed myself gathering strength from nothing more than wanting to be there for him in a way that I knew he needed, regardless of my own emotions at the time.
Here’s the story—
Around 10 pm that Thursday evening my dad and his friend Bill were on their way home from a meeting when another vehicle came into their lane hitting them head on. Luckily, just before the vehicle caught fire, people came and got my dad and Bill out of the vehicle and called for help. They were then air lifted to the hospital where my dad had to have emergency surgery on his abdomen to repair his internal injuries. It wasn’t until the next morning that any of us were notified of the incident. I think that is the scariest part about all of this— how life continues so uneventfully while something so tragic can be happening at the same time.
After getting yanked out of bed I then made my way to the hospital scared to death, not knowing what to prepare myself for or what I was about to see. It was an extremely difficult three days seeing him in the state that he was in— Tubes everywhere, machines beeping, seeing my dad unable to effectively communicate, noticing how weak he was, and wondering if I would ever hear his voice again outside of the hospital. It was an incredibly trying time for both my family and I, and the feeling that radiated through my bones was an emotion I had never felt before. I stood, for what seemed like hours, looking at his vitals reminding him to breathe. I can’t even begin to describe the fear I felt as I continued to be there for him the only way I knew how.
After 2 more surgeries to repair the multiple shattered bones and a lot of stress and anxiety my dad made his way out of the Surgical Trauma ICU and into the Trauma ICU. Overall, This recovery has been incredibly difficult and slow. From all of this he now suffers from two broken ankles, a broken femur, a shattered elbow and broken humerus, and a broken Tibia— that’s not even taking the internal injuries into consideration.
But, For all that he has been through, my dad continues to be MY rock in this situation like he always has been. Regardless of the pain and aches he may feel, His spirits are constantly high and he’s been focusing on positivity— this is one of the things I absolutely adore about him. I am truly blessed to have a dad that’s as amazing as he is, and I’m even more blessed to still have him here with me after the last couple weeks and what he has been through.
Unfortunately, this situation could cause an unexpected financial strain on my dad. Due to his extremely long road to recovery I decided to create this page for him to try and alleviate some of his stress so he can focus on himself and whatever he needs to do to get better. Whether it be donations, prayers, good wishes, visiting him and keeping him company— absolutely anything helps.
I truly thank everyone for what they have done thus far to support my dad and for being there for him, my family, and I. We are truly blessed to have such an amazing support group and loving friends. There have been points through this entire situation where I sat with my dad and all we could do is be grateful for the people around us. So, genuinely, thank you for everything. We are so incredibly lucky.
Again, anything and everything helps.
Thank you so much.
Edwards daughter, M’Kenzie McNally
January 31st, 2019. That’s the day that my world turned upside down and I didn’t even know it yet.
———
For those of you that don’t know— my dad, and very best friend, was a passenger in a vehicle that was involved in a head on collision that nearly took his life.
Despite all he has been through, my dad always pushes forward and finds the brightest part of any dark situation. That’s one quality that I found myself begging to understand over the last few weeks. I noticed myself gathering strength from nothing more than wanting to be there for him in a way that I knew he needed, regardless of my own emotions at the time.
Here’s the story—
Around 10 pm that Thursday evening my dad and his friend Bill were on their way home from a meeting when another vehicle came into their lane hitting them head on. Luckily, just before the vehicle caught fire, people came and got my dad and Bill out of the vehicle and called for help. They were then air lifted to the hospital where my dad had to have emergency surgery on his abdomen to repair his internal injuries. It wasn’t until the next morning that any of us were notified of the incident. I think that is the scariest part about all of this— how life continues so uneventfully while something so tragic can be happening at the same time.
After getting yanked out of bed I then made my way to the hospital scared to death, not knowing what to prepare myself for or what I was about to see. It was an extremely difficult three days seeing him in the state that he was in— Tubes everywhere, machines beeping, seeing my dad unable to effectively communicate, noticing how weak he was, and wondering if I would ever hear his voice again outside of the hospital. It was an incredibly trying time for both my family and I, and the feeling that radiated through my bones was an emotion I had never felt before. I stood, for what seemed like hours, looking at his vitals reminding him to breathe. I can’t even begin to describe the fear I felt as I continued to be there for him the only way I knew how.
After 2 more surgeries to repair the multiple shattered bones and a lot of stress and anxiety my dad made his way out of the Surgical Trauma ICU and into the Trauma ICU. Overall, This recovery has been incredibly difficult and slow. From all of this he now suffers from two broken ankles, a broken femur, a shattered elbow and broken humerus, and a broken Tibia— that’s not even taking the internal injuries into consideration.
But, For all that he has been through, my dad continues to be MY rock in this situation like he always has been. Regardless of the pain and aches he may feel, His spirits are constantly high and he’s been focusing on positivity— this is one of the things I absolutely adore about him. I am truly blessed to have a dad that’s as amazing as he is, and I’m even more blessed to still have him here with me after the last couple weeks and what he has been through.
Unfortunately, this situation could cause an unexpected financial strain on my dad. Due to his extremely long road to recovery I decided to create this page for him to try and alleviate some of his stress so he can focus on himself and whatever he needs to do to get better. Whether it be donations, prayers, good wishes, visiting him and keeping him company— absolutely anything helps.
I truly thank everyone for what they have done thus far to support my dad and for being there for him, my family, and I. We are truly blessed to have such an amazing support group and loving friends. There have been points through this entire situation where I sat with my dad and all we could do is be grateful for the people around us. So, genuinely, thank you for everything. We are so incredibly lucky.
Again, anything and everything helps.
Thank you so much.
Edwards daughter, M’Kenzie McNally
Organizer and beneficiary
M'Kenzie Alexandra McNally
Organizer
Charlotte, NC
Edward Mcnally
Beneficiary