WASHINGTON — “I don't really expect anything... but if anyone can help even a little I would be so grateful.”

Last Friday morning, David Harrington had just dropped his wife, Inga Tumanova, off at Waldo County General Hospital in Belfast, where she works in the lab, when he was about to turn into a gas station to grab some gas and a breakfast sandwich. This was their morning routine.

At 24 years old, he is the only one in the household with a driver’s license and each morning he would take her to work from their home in Washington and pick her up again in the evening. On this morning, he planned on going back home to study a particular computer program toward his goal of earning computer certifications for employment.

The police report differs from David’s testimony, but what he remembers is driving 10 to 15 miles per hour, getting ready to turn and another driver going about 25-30 miles over the limit before the crash occurred.

“That’s what I remembered and what everyone I spoke to afterward told me,” he said.

The airbag deployed; his car’s windows and doors were bashed in. At some point, he lost consciousness. An ambulance immediately brought David back to the same hospital where his wife works. “They called down and had another co-worker tell her face to face to make sure she was okay and sent her right over,” he said.

Among his injuries, he suffered a minor concussion with head wounds. One foot was dislocated and his ankle was broken in two different places. His other foot has a small fracture. One of his ribs is broken, as well as one wrist. In addition, he suffered severe internal bruising.

Beyond the car getting totaled, with his wife now having to rely on co-workers to get her to and from work, David faces other obstacles. He is back at home, his days filled with calls to doctors, lawyers, the police and social services, while his studying is left to the side, for the moment. He cares for his two disabled parents at home, who can only give him limited support while his wife is at work. He said his injuries are excruciating, and he has been left largely to care for himself during the day.

He also needs access to an electric wheelchair. The only help he could get was the free use of a traditional wheelchair, which he currently has, but with splints on his feet and the use of only one hand to propel his weight, it’s tremendously painful and awkward to get around.

Inga is covered by health insurance, but since David has been studying to be a computer technician, he said he didn’t have the money for health insurance.

Like a lot of Mainers trying to make ends meet, this accident couldn’t have come at a worse time for the couple. Finding a motorized wheelchair is not a cheap expense, so David started a Go Fund Me page. In speaking with David, it’s evident that he doesn’t like asking for help and it bothers him to have done so, but feeling a sense of desperation, he said he had to.

“This has taught me that everybody needs help at some point and as hard as things have been, it could have been much much worse,” he said. “I’m just so grateful to the people who have helped in any way that they can.”

This has not been an easy winter for many people. The most recent Maine Bureau of Highway accident statistics (2012) show that the number of serious injuries in vehicle crashes is higher than it’s been in the last four years. So, what does a serious accident like this teach someone who is young, uninsured and not prepared for the kind of hard life lessons that have piled up on David? 

For the injured, it puts them in a vulnerable position to re-evaluate what support systems (and lack thereof) they have in place, and either find gratitude in the support they’re lucky to have, or vow to find new support systems once they are healed. This also isn’t just about making health insurance a priority. This can be a hard transformation to come through (especially when re-evaluating friendships and family relationships) but ultimately, it helps sharpen one’s perspective on what’s essential in a newly healed life — and what’s not.

For those coming off a long period of healing, it can heighten one’s sensitivity to the suffering of others. Compassion isn’t just an emotion; it’s a skill. And throughout all of the frustration, fear and anger David is currently experiencing as he makes his way through these obstacles, he said he is learning what it means to help others and allow himself to be helped.

Taking a cue from Bill Packard’s column earlier this week, in our small town communities, everyone seems to know one another. We often talk, compare, and judge what people should or should not have done in certain circumstances, but when someone truly needs help, we drop the “shoulds” and show compassion.

Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com