Clayton Taylor is taking his usual place with his family this Christmas.
It is a feat that he made it home this year; it is a feat that he got to take that seat at the family dinner table ever again.
Taylor and another driver were involved in a violent collision on Sept. 10 at the Moffat Street alley's intersection with 5th Avenue. The injuries to Taylor were catastrophic. He had broken ribs, both lungs collapsed, broken sternum, his C2 vertebrae was broken, the base of his skull was fractured, his jaw was in several pieces, most bones in his face were broken, and worst of all was massive trauma to the brain.
"The police officer at the scene said he might not make it to the hospital. At the hospital they told us he might not make it to Vancouver. Then we were told he may not come out of his coma and if he did he might be in a vegetative state," said his mother Valerie Taylor.
"The list of his injuries was a full page, and it was all bilateral - both sides," said his father Bill Taylor. "We are absolutely faith people. We trusted in and believed in a full recovery being possible, and God came through, and we have to thank the doctors and the medical teams that worked for that."
They had some help. The Taylor family is large (Clayton has five siblings, plus their husbands and wives and children). His brother Jesse was also his roommate. Jesse and various other members of the close-knit group rushed to his bedside and would not leave.
"We slept in the waiting room until sometimes we got kicked out," said Jesse. "We would stay up until 3 in the morning, 5 in the morning, going in shifts. The people there started to get to know us. Security guards would show us places where we could be private. Nurses would let us have warm towels and pillows."
Enlarged pictures of Clayton doing his renowned skateboarding activities, and Clayton's family members soon papered his room in the Intensive Care Unit at Vancouver General Hospital, placed there by a brother who said "I want the nurses to see what they are fighting for."
The did, and so did he. Clayton was two weeks in a coma, three weeks in ICU, seven weeks in VGH, and then on Oct. 26 he was transferred to G.F. Strong, the province's intensive rehabilitation hospital.
"Four weeks ago I couldn't sit upright without tipping over," he said. "I got out of the wheelchair a week and a half ago." Now, said his mom, he can sometimes walk around without his crutches.
"His recovery has been astounding," said Bill. "Everyone we have talked to said it would be a long, rocky road. And there have been setbacks. But I have seen an increase in his abilities every day."
Clayton flew into Prince George Thursday morning and was greeted by throngs of supporters and well-wishers. In addition to his blood family, there was a strong church family, a strong skateboarder family since he was one of the city's best and most popular boarders, and a lot of other people who spent months raising money and other resources to support the Taylors in their time of need. People even decorated their house for Christmas because everyone was away at Clayton's side until his arrival.
He is only here a few days, then he has to return to G.F. Strong. It is expected that he will be turned over to the rehab teams at University Hospital in Prince George on Jan. 19. He is thinking only of this precious window of time, right now, though.
"I can't do anything physical. And I get tired easily. At 10 in the morning I want to go back to sleep," he said. "I just want to see everyone again: my family and my friends."
Police investigation still underway
The causes of the crash that sent Clayton Taylor to hospital, and nearly killed him, still have not been officially determined.
"The traffic reconstructionist had to provide a report, and that takes considerable amounts of time due to the intricacies and minute details that have to be analyzed," said Prince George RCMP spokesman Cpl. Craig Douglass. "That, in most cases, takes months.
"A number of witnesses was spoken to and provided an in-depth baseline for the investigation.
"We are optimistic that a comprehensive report will, fairly soon, be concluded and forwarded to Crown for their consideration. We don't lay charges, that is the job of provincial Crown, but we are still waiting for reports to be submitted to us."
He said the general members of the RCMP in Prince George were aware of the case and Taylor's recovery was encouraging for the detachment.
