Help Family recover from Drunk Driver Accident

On Wednesday, February 3, 2021, Rita and her two sons Luke (age 16) and Isaac (age13) were returning home in their car from visiting Rita’s parents around 4:30 pm. It was a pleasant afternoon with dry roads. Luke, who is still a student driver, was driving their car, Rita was in the front passenger seat, Isaac was in the back seat, and their dog Piper was in the very back of their Mercury Mariner SUV.  Luke was stopped at a stop sign at the intersection of Cherry Street and Holderrieth Rd, when the car was suddenly and violently hit from behind by a truck that was speeding and did not apply his brakes, according to witnesses. The Proske's car was instantly accelerated, went flying across both lanes on Holderrieth, through the ditch and up the embankment. You can see from the photos that the back half of the car was severely crushed. The driver of the truck was a heavily intoxicated 59-year-old male with 2 previous DWI’s in the last 13 months. Thankfully paramedics arrived within minutes. Isaac was screaming in excruciating pain and was given pain meds on site. The jaws of life had to be used to cut both Isaac and their dog Piper out of the back part of the car. Isaac's femur (thigh bone) was broken and dislocated (X-ray photo). Their dog Piper had to be put down due to a broken back.  Luke and Isaac both sustained concussions and both boys still have no memory of the crash. Rita was badly shaken and disoriented; when she opened the door to get out to see what had happened, she fell out of the car onto the ground as her leg collapsed. She sustained deep tissue bruising on both upper thighs from the lap belt and a shoulder/neck injury from the shoulder harness; the air bags did not deploy at all. Luke was completely disoriented from his concussion and did not know what was going on. He tried to help his brother who was crushed between the seat behind him and kept on asking everyone the same questions (what happened, who was in the car, where were we going, was everyone ok, was he driving, was it his fault...) over and over again for hours. Paul, the father, was able to arrive and see them at the scene before following the ambulances as they took all three of his family members to the Memorial Hermann ER in The Woodlands. Luke and Rita were released later that night from the hospital, but Isaac was put in traction and transferred by ambulance to the Children’s Memorial Hermann ER at the Texas Medical Center in Houston for emergency leg surgery. He had a 4 hour surgery to repair his broken femur and insert a rod, so he stayed a second night in the hospital. Paul was at his side the entire time while Rita was home taking care of Luke. Isaac will need rehab in the future, possibly another surgery, and the doctor said there is a chance he might have some knee damage as well. Isaac has to spend several weeks on crutches and it is estimated it will take between 6 months and a year for a full recovery. That is a very long time for a 13 year old. Money collected from GoFundMe will help pay for rehab costs for Isaac.

The Car Situation:

The family has since purchased a safe replacement car for Rita and Luke to drive.
Insurance will cover only the depreciated value of the totaled older car, which was worth approximately $4,000. The new car is a Ford Edge and was purchased with a loan. Money raised from this GoFundMe will greatly help them cover some of the costs of this unexpected car loan. The drunk driver is unemployed, owns no property or other assets, lives in an apartment, and has only the minimum auto insurance, so it would do no good for the family to file suit for their car, hospital/ambulance bills, rehab, or their pain/suffering. 

The Kitchen and Food Situation:

The Proske's home is currently being repaired/remodeled after an a/c leak on the first floor (covered by homeowner’s insurance) so they have no kitchen/bathroom/running water downstairs. Renovation is underway and hopefully this situation will improve in the next 1-2 months. But in the meantime, meals are challenging. Some of you might like to donate meals directly to the family, but both boys have food allergies. Donations for them to buy prepared food would be very helpful.

The Drunk Driver
Rita and Paul are sharing their photos and telling their story to show what can happen to the victims of a drunk driver. This man, who has forever changed their lives by harming their children and killing their dog, now has had his third recent DWI. He was not harmed in the accident but was so drunk he had to be supported by police to walk to their car. He was taken directly to jail from the scene and is being charged with a 3rd degree felony (2-10 years prison time). Hopefully he will have his license revoked and he will never drive again. The Proske family is dealing with their grief and anger, but also are feeling so blessed that everyone survived and are asking for prayers that Isaac will heal with time. They hope to find a Texas legislator willing to sponsor a bill that would raise the auto insurance liability minima for anyone with a previous DWI conviction.