White sets goals, tackles new challenges
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BY RYLY JANE HAMBLETON / Lincoln Journal Star
J.J. rushed in from the deck, swished his tail and ran over to greet his master.
The big golden retriever was careful around Bob White. No jumping in his lap like he used to, just a happy dog smile and a lick or two.
“They’re my Band-Aids,” Bob said of his 9-year-old retriever and 7-year-old gold Labrador, Tanner. “They are my support.”
A “Run for Bob” is planned Feb. 23 at Haymarket Park.
A 5-kilometer run will begin at 3 p.m. with a 1-mile fun run/walk to follow. Proceeds will go to Bob White and his family for medical expenses resulting from a December accident.
Entry fees are $20 for the 5K run and $10 for the mile. The deadline is Saturday, although entries will be accepted on race day for an additional $2.
Send information to Bob White Benefit, c/o Stacey Fentress, 3230 W. Sumner St., Lincoln, 68522.
Questions? Call the Lincoln High athletic office at 436-1536.
Bob is home now, 46 days after an accident that left him with a fractured skull, a broken pelvis and tail bone, and a left leg crushed so badly it had to be amputated.
His brother, Rick, suffered eight broken ribs, a collapsed lung, a bleeding spleen and a broken leg.
Bob’s son Scott escaped with a bruise on his knee.
The Whites were returning from a goose-hunting trip to western Nebraska on Dec. 23 when they pulled onto the shoulder of Interstate 80 near York to check on the trailer they were hauling.
Scott saw the approaching car and tried to warn his father and uncle before diving for safety. A split second later, a driver who was allegedly drunk rammed the trailer, throwing Rick some 50 feet and pinning Bob between it and the SUV.
“I have no memory of the accident, thank goodness,” Bob said Tuesday, sitting with his wife, Susan, in the living room of their south Lincoln home. He got home from the hospital on Thursday.
Before the accident, the longtime history teacher and track coach at Lincoln High lifted weights three times a week and jogged twice a week.
For a month, doctors at Bryan-LGH West Medical Center tried to save his leg. He had five surgeries in seven days and 11 in all, including the amputation on Jan. 22.
As a coach and teacher, Bob always instructed his students and athletes to set goals. Not just one big goal way off in the future, but a series of achievable goals.
Now, he finds himself applying that same principle while working with his trainer at Madonna.
“Now she’s my coach,” Bob said. “She asked me if I was willing to work. We have to improve my strength and flexibility and get me ready for the prosthesis.”
First came a walk of 40 feet.
“I was exhausted,” he said.
So he’s taking baby steps, but, typical of a coach, he has his eye on final results.
“I want to help out with the track team if I can walk in and out. No wheelchair or walker,” he said. “And I will be wearing shorts.”
By then, he will know if he can accomplish his next goal: working as a head official for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Eugene, Ore., at the end of June.
“The head official told me they expect to see me the day officials report,” he said.
Each day brings more challenges. People who know Bob are sure he is equal to the task.
Nearly 400 messages have been posted to his carepages.com page on the internet.
At the hospital, Susan asked visitors — friends, co-workers and former students and athletes — to write messages to Bob on recipe cards and red ribbon.
“We didn’t really have Christmas,” she said. “Actually, on Christmas Eve, after an emergency surgery, my youngest son, Scott, said, ‘Our present is already here. We survived the accident.’
“I was going to make a tree with the blessing cards, but now it’s going to be a Valentine tree. Some of the messages are humorous, which is no surprise when you know Bob, and some are hugely endearing.”
On Thursday, Bob will see his orthopedic surgeon to check on the healing process and move a step closer to being fitted for a temporary prosthesis.
It will be several months to a year before he gets a permanent leg.
For now, he will concentrate on his physical therapy.
“The first time I went to rehab, they weighed me,” said Bob, who had dropped from 173 pounds before the accident to 137. “I asked them to weigh me again.”
The weight loss should have been no surprise. During the seven-day/five-surgery period, he was on a mostly liquid diet.
“I never want Jell-O or chicken broth again,” he said, glancing at Susan to make sure she heard. “That hospital stay was so long, I memorized the menu.
“But now I’m eating again.”
Bob gets emotional when asked about the community outpouring for him and his family.
“I can’t believe so many people want to do these things for me,” he said.
Sons Scott and Ryan spoke at halftime of the Links’ basketball game on Jan. 17, the night fans wore white in support of the family.
“We listened to the boys speak and we were crying in the hospital room,” their mother said. “They both did an eloquent job speaking before a big crowd.”
Fans of rival schools have offered support and helped raise money, and sponsors have lined up to back a “Run for Bob” set for Feb. 23.
In conjunction, the Community Blood Bank will be on hand, and people who can’t run or walk can donate blood.
“Ryan, our oldest son, is the one who came up with the idea for the blood donation,” Susan said. “Bob went through a lot of blood in those operations.”
Susan says her husband, and others involved in the accident, are handling their emotions better with each passing day.
“It took him two or three weeks to cry. I came in the room and asked him how it could have taken so long,” she said. “The night of the accident, my brother and I drove out to York in separate cars in case I needed to stay and he could bring the dogs back.
“On the way back, we came across the site of the accident and there were police lights. ... I howled like a coyote.”
After all the attempts to save his leg, Bob and his wife agreed it was almost a relief when the decision was made.
“So much was happening and decisions were so hard. His kidneys were shutting down and his leg was rejecting his body,” Susan said. “The doctors said it was time and ... Bob said, ‘I know it’s time,’ and he finally began to smile.”
The coach to so many runners flashes that smile more now, his blue-gray eyes accentuating its brilliance.
“I have a lot of work to do,” he said. “But that will be a fun finish line.”
Ryly Jane Hambleton at 473-7314 or rhambleton@journalstar.com.
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Stay strong, Mr. White - we're all pulling for you! "
afriend wrote on February 13, 2008 12:54 pm:
"
1983 hurdle champion wrote on February 13, 2008 3:38 pm:
God bess you and your family "
Tippy Senders wrote on February 13, 2008 3:56 pm:
Good Luck Bob and Rick. "
A Parent of a LINK wrote on February 13, 2008 6:20 pm:
andy wrote on February 13, 2008 6:21 pm:
"
RE: andy wrote on February 15, 2008 11:53 am:
Andy, it sounds as if you have some resentment somewhere. I would not even begin to describe a teacher's salary as excellent or begin to say that they have excellent benefits to fall back on. It is sad that you can't seem to recognize the impact that this man has had on the world. I was privileged and honored to have had the opportunity to work with Mr. White. He is, with out a doubt, one of the most caring individuals I have ever met. Have you, Andy, even stopped to realize how many lives Mr. White has touched? Think about it. On average, a high school teacher teaches 5 classes a day. Each class will have about 30 students in it. That's 150 students a day for one semester, 300 students per year. Now, take into account how many students Mr. White coaches in a year that may not be in his regular instructional classes. Then multiply that number by how many years he has been an educator. Bob White encourages people. He makes a mark on society. He works in a profession where, more often than not, there is no fanfare, no expression of gratitude, no thank yous, and you want to complain about the fact that the media is covering this story?
Hmmm, maybe you never had a teacher like Bob White to show you compassion and understanding. He is a credit to his profession and is an example of what hard work and determination can get you. It's too bad that there aren't more people like Bob White in this world. "