27 September 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – A teen paralyzed from the diaphragm down after a serious crash in June returned home Tuesday night. The Mulvane community rallied behind Creighton Schmidt.
The Mulvane Sports Complex buzzed with anticipation as people waited for Creighton to come down the street on his way back to his house.
The 17-year-old has been in Omaha for eight weeks getting specialized care for a spinal cord injury.
His injuries change how he does things, but haven’t changed who he is, according to Schmidt.
An early morning drive to work changed everything for Creighton Schmidt.
“I hadn’t slept the whole night previously. I fell asleep behind the wheel, drove into a ditch and rolled my truck,” Schmidt said. “From then I woke up two and a half weeks later in the hospital.”
“In the beginning he wasn’t even expected to live and then they said they didn’t expect him to. wake up and know how to talk,” said Megan Schmidt, Creighton’s mom.
When the crash happened, the family received overwhelming support from friends and loved ones looking for updates.
“I just started sharing his story on Facebook and it just kind of grew from there,” Schmidt said.
The posts got shared. Over time, Schmidt had a whole community rallying behind her. Those same people lined the streets to welcome her son back.
“I felt like this needed to be shared with them,” Schmidt said.
Creighton’s determination is surpassing medical expectations.
“He definitely has spirit,” said Cait Scott, Inpatient Speech Language Pathologist at Madonna Hospital Omaha. “He is, like I said you know, very lively.”
For the past eight weeks, Creighton has called the Madonna rehabilitation hospital in Omaha home.
Scott says he is dedicated to getting better and helping younger patients, even winning an award.
“He built off of what he had and he also never really complained about what he didn’t have,” Scott said.
“You got two options,” Creighton said. “You can sit there and pout about it or you can make the best of it.”
People who know Creighton know he has a bright future ahead of him.
“This injury, it stopped him for a brief moment,” Scott said. “But it’s not gonna stop him from doing amazing things in life.”
Creighton is adjusting to his new way of living, and is determined to not let what happened to him overshadow who he is.
“The only thing everybody needs to know is that I’m really the same person,” Creighton said. “There’s nothing different.”
The hospital where Creighton received care asked him to return as a peer mentor to help other patients.