In Michigan, a five-year-old boy is recovering from a traumatic brain injury after his family’s car was struck by a semi tractor-trailer in Shelby Township, according to MLive. His name is Connor Weston.

It was not just Connor who was taken to the hospital. It was also Benjamin Weston, 40; Michelle Joy Weston, 36; Dylan Thomas Weston, 7; Logan Alexander Weston, 10; and Jerrine Marie Forrest, 34.

Forrest’s 2016 Mazda and the Weston’s family car was hit by Jonathon William Ashley’s semi. Ashley said he only looked away for a second, and when he looked back, traffic had slowed. Ashley only had minor injuries.

Connor’s brain injury was described as “catastrophic.” The family was incurring a lot of costs trying to stay with their son. A Go Fund Me page was created to raise funds “to help offset the cost of lost wages, replacing a vehicle, travel back and forth to doctor’s visits and physical therapy, etc,” the page states. As of July 28, the page had raised $12,980 by 178 people in 16 days. A great sign of community rallying around a family in need.

Connor was four-years-old at the time of the crash, but since turned five. At the time of the accident, Connor was wearing a seatbelt and was in a child’s seat in the back of the car.

Among all age groups, motor vehicle crashes were the third leading cause of traumatic brain injury at 14 percent, according to the CDC.

The truck involved in the crash driven by Ashley was owned by Apache Logistics of Holland. It was a 2016 Freightliner semi. The Weston’s were driving a 2000 Subaru Outback. The accident occurred at about 12:45 on July 5. The accident backed up traffic for hours as people were heading back south after the Fourth of July weekend.

The Westons were traveling between destinations on summer vacation, not suspecting they would go through this tragedy. Oceana County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Craig Mast said that Connor will likely need care and follow-up for the rest of his life. Mast reported that the boy is now stable since he is able to breathe on his own.

The goal of the Go Fund Me page is to raise $100,000 for the family. It was started by a family friend named Jamien Bland from Port Huron, MI.

Gordon Johnson

Attorney Gordon Johnson is one of the nations leading brain injury advocates. He is Past-Chair of the TBILG, a national group of more than 150 brain injury advocates. He has spoken at numerous brain injury seminars and is the author of some of the most read brain injury web pages on the internet.

More Posts - Website - 800-992-9447