Don Mitchell Is Still Alive!

Back in November, you may have heard me talking about my friend Don on the air. There are blog entries about it, too. But somehow he lived through a head-on accident involving a drunk driver. The above photograph is from the accident scene. Don was in the passenger seat of the pick up truck--or what's left of it.

I met Don Mitchell in 1992 in Provo when X96 first signed on. Our studios were in Provo, and I had to move from the Ogden area to Utah County. I didn't know anybody in that town, but somehow bumped into Don and his buddies Aaron Allen and Dave Madden. I eventually moved in to their crappy little apartment at Branbury Park in Provo. I can't tell you many of the details about our adventures as dumb college guys, but there were many and it was awesome. But mostly, these guys were good friends. They still are.

Below is an article from the Richfield Reaper about Don's progress so far. It fails to mention that Don made it through the whole ordeal without even a scratch on his Brad Pitt-like good looks.

Mitchell riding on road to recovery


By David Anderson - Associate Editor
Tuesday, January 30, 2007 2:03 PM MST

This sign was posted at the Super Wash in Richfield to welcome home Don Mitchell after spending weeks in a hospital following an automobile accident.

In a flash of a moment, Monroe resident Don Mitchell's life was irrevocably changed forever.

Mitchell was riding with friend Eric Biggs, 35, Annabella, Nov. 5, 2006, when a car driven by someone under the influence of alcohol slammed into Biggs' truck. Of the three people involved in the crash, Mitchell's injuries were the worst.

“I died two times,” said Mitchell, who suffered multiple broken bones and brain injuries. He says he doesn't remember the accident, or much afterward. “Everyone else got to experience it, but me.”

Mitchell is now able to amble around with the help of a walker, but it will likely be months before he is able to do some of the things he enjoys, including golfing and long mountain bike rides. The tools for his recovery include a daily regimen of physical therapy, including two days a week of water therapy at the Richfield City Swimming Pool.Even though the process of mending his body is frustratingly long and sometimes painful, Mitchell has kept his sense of humor.“That was one of the first signs we got from him,” said Laurie Terry, Mitchell's sister. She said that she told her brother, while he was still in a coma, that his friends were out in the hallway coming up with catheter jokes to use on him. “He smiled and raised his arm.”Humor has proven to be an important factor in Mitchell's recovery. While talking about having to go back into surgery to fix the torn ACLs in his knees, Mitchell said, “don't make the same mistake I did, and call it an ACLU.”While Mitchell jokes about his situation, Terry said that it was deadly serious.“If not for the ambulance crew, ER crew and trauma crew ... we could have lost him,” Terry said.Each week, Mitchell attempts to do more than the previous week in his physical therapy sessions. It's his way of trying to get back to exactly where he was before the accident.“It's been hard, but the good thing is, at least I get to catch up on my stories,” Mitchell said.The driver of the vehicle that caused the accident was sentenced in Sixth District Court Jan. 16. Bradley D. Burnett, 42, Joseph, was charged with failure to stop/respond at command of police and driving under the influence of alcohol/drugs. Burnett was sentenced to two terms of 0-5 years Utah State Prison.Meanwhile, Mitchell is dealing with the residual effects of the brain injury. Terry said that he's a little more impulsive, and sometimes pauses while he mentally searches for the right word.“I'm on the mend,” Mitchell said. “No ... prowl, say I'm on the prowl.”

todd's iPod

10:20 am "Fake Plastic Trees" Radiohead

1:20 pm "Butterfly Wings" Machines of Loving Grace