Student overcomes crash injuries to pursue education
by Marisa Baldazo, staff writer
It’s the simplest things we take for granted.
Simple acts such as pouring milk into
your cereal every morning, being able to carry a full glass
of water, or even being able to write your own name, are not
to be taken lightly. For Megan Delaine Ganze, a freshman at
South Plains College, these are precious abilities that she
will not take for granted.
During her senior year at Monterey High
School, Ganze, 18, fell victim to
two vehicle accidents in
Lubbock in a three – month span.
“My first accident happened in October,
but wasn’t really bad,” says Ganze, and education major. “I
was on 58th and University, taking friends home.
Both stoplights were green, and I thought I had the right of
way. The one after that was the worst. I had my second
accident on Jan. 24 at 9:17 a.m. I know that so well,
because it was on the news. I was stopped at a red light
between 50th and University when a truck hit me
going 55 miles per hour. I don’t really remember much after
that.”
Because of the severity of her second
accident, Ganze suffered a broken left clavicle and a broken
right forearm that had to have surgery. Ganze had to relearn
how to write and relied on family members for help.
“I had to teach myself how to write
left – handed because my bones were not used to going over
the metal plates from my surgery,” Ganze said. “My
classmates would get really mad at me because it would take
me twice as long, and my paper would look awful. My teachers
would even lose their tempers sometimes. My grades suffered
a lot, but thank Jesus colleges will except C grades. I was
really lucky to have my family for support. My brother,
Gator, would get out of class early and carry my books for
me.”
Although Ganze’s outlook on life after
her experience is positive, she says that the two scars she
received on her forearm from surgery can be a bit of a
nuisance.
“They are definitely icebreakers,”
Ganze said. “In fact, I always get questions about them. I
don’t really mind, but I do get self – conscious sometimes.
I usually stick to long sleeves, but once I get comfortable
around people, I start wearing short sleeves. I haven’t been
wearing them lately because this is all so new, but I know I
will eventually.”
Even though Ganze feels that she missed
out on her last year of high school, her outlook on the
whole incident is rather upbeat.
“I wish I had made the fire hydrant go
off,” Ganze said. “It would have made my day if it had. That
would have been so cool.”
Photo by Chelsea Baham/Plainsman Press
