Nearly eight months after being hit by a minivan, Phoenix Gureckas is ‘back to her normal self’

Even as her daughter lay in a hospital bed at McMaster Children's Hospital this past spring, Jodi Pollington swore that she would make it to her Grade 8 graduation.

Pollington wasn't going to let anything stop her 14-year-old daughter, Phoenix Gureckas, from getting her diploma. Not even the fallout of a horrific crash that left her with an assortment of injuries that included two broken legs and a skull fracture that led to some brain damage.

She made this promise during an interview with The Spectator in early May, just days after Gureckas was struck by a minivan in the early evening of April 30 while out walking with her two younger brothers and three friends in the city's east end.

She had jumped into its path to push her little brother out of the way. Before she could move to safety, the minivan smashed into her and sent her flying into the windshield. (Police say the 30-year-old van driver fled the scene but was later charged in the alleged hit-and-run.)

Gureckas was rushed to hospital with serious injuries and spent a handful of days in intensive care, where she required a feeding tube and a catheter.

But just a little more than 50 days later, Gureckas did in fact make it to the late-June ceremony.

She wore a silky navy blue dress and sparkly silver stilettos, her hair was done in French braids and her best friend helped push her wheelchair to the front of the room so she could be handed her certificate.

She had just done so well," said Pollington. It was really nice to see."

Gureckas continues to recover at home nearly eight months after the harrowing incident, which was one in a string of pedestrian-involved collisions on Hamilton's streets this year, many which were fatal.

The teen spent more than two months in a hospital bed. She had to relearn how to walk and use her left arm, which was badly broken in the crash.

She's never looked back since being discharged in early July, said Pollington. Gureckas was sent home with a wheelchair, a commode chair and a shower bench to help ease her recovery, but she didn't use any of them.

She wanted to get up and do stuff faster than she was allowed," said Pollington. She was really eager."

Her legs are now fully healed, but she still goes to appointments at the fracture clinic at McMaster to check on her arm, which is not completely back to normal.

She does require some help with learning due to her brain injury and still sees both an occupational and speech therapist, said Pollington.

But when the first day of school rolled around in September, Gureckas was able to walk to and from school - and stay the entire day - to the surprise of her classmates.

I can't believe how fast things have happened for her," said Pollington. She's back to her normal self and she's doing really well."

Despite her daughter's recovery, the crash still looms over Pollington. Meanwhile, Gureckas doesn't remember much of the incident and avoids talking about it, she noted.

Pollington is hopeful that drivers will be more careful" in the coming year and that the city continues working to improve the safety of Hamilton's streets.

The family is also looking forward to a future with less medical appointments and a normal, more fun-filled summer, she added.

Phoenix has lots of days ahead of her," said Pollington. I'm just so grateful that she's recovering quickly."

Fallon Hewitt is a reporter at The Spectator. fhewitt@thespec.com