Elisa Turner '74 Shares Her Story of 'Life After a Coma' with NPR

June 7, 2005

June 7, 2005, Greencastle, Ind. - [Download Audio: "Life After a Coma" - 271kb] "My handwriting resembled a jumble of gray threads," Elisa Turner, a 1974 graduate of DePauw University, recalls of her "Life After a Coma."  Turner was seriously injured last August when she and her husband (Eric Smith '72), daughter Margaret had an auto accident while dropping son Grant Smith off at DePauw to begin his freshman year.  She shares her story on today's edition of National Public Radio's News & Notes with Ed Gordon in a piece that was produced by Angie Hamilton-Lowe, a 2000 DePauw graduate.

"Even the concept, what am I doing here?, was too advanced for me," Turner recalls of her recovery in the hospital.  "Within the peculiar logic of what was now my world I don't remember being particularly frustrated by how slow and hard everything was.  I just found everything puzzling.  'Why can't I tie my sneakers?,' I thought as the blue laces sifted like straw through my fingers."

Turner, an art critic for Florida's Miami Herald, says her doctors now tell her she will likely fully recover from her injuries, although the process may take two years.

  [Download Audio: "Completing the Journey" - 262kb] "Several weekends ago, Eric and I flew to Indianapolis," Turner says.  "We rented a car and visited Grant at DePauw.  I didn't want to commit a mom's cardinal sin of embarrassing her grown son by crying over him, but it was touching to see him happy and settled.  Almost eight months after I had begun the trip to see my son start college, I was so lucky to finish the journey."

Producer Angie Hamilton-Lowe says, "Elisa's story was assigned to me, and as soon as I read that she and her family were on their way to DePauw when the accident occurred, I was covered in goose bumps. The accident occurred on I-70, which made her description even more painful to read. I called her later that day to set up a recording session, and we talked for a long time about her recovery, her family, and of course, DePauw. A few days later, I also talked with her son, Grant, about how his freshman year went after he recovered. I was happy to hear he was enjoying DePauw."

The 2000 graduate (seen at left) concludes, "In this business of covering national news, it's just one story after another. They all end up blending together. But this assignment was meaningful to me. Elisa's story is tragic, yes, but it's also truly inspiring, and I was honored to help her share it on the radio."

Hear the complete piece by clicking here, and visit News & Notes with Ed Gordon online here. 

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