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Scotty Key
September 28, 1989
~ July 5, 1999
WE MISS YOU SCOTTY!
Memories of you are a cherished gift.
We miss you so much but are comforted by the warm memories of your humor,
your enthusiasm and your laughter. You are with us always. You are part of
every milestone we celebrate and each obstacle we overcome. We are stronger
than we should be, but not hardened from the pain. If we let our hearts
harden, we wouldn't be able to smile at the sweet memories you left us
with; and we may not recognize the joy that we still are to eachother. We
draw strength from your love ~ your gift to us. You are never forgotten and
forever safe in our hearts until we meet again.
With all our love, sweet Scotty.
Mom, Miranda, Tiffany and Haley
THE ACCIDENT...
July 5th did not start off like any other day for
me.
I woke up that morning with a smile on my face for many reasons.
When I got up, my boyfriend, Darcy gave me a cup of coffee
And I went out to the back yard and sat at the table.
I remember sitting there thinking how lucky I am.
We had just picked up Miranda, Scotty, and Tiffany the night before
after spending a week in Hawaii..
In spite of the wonderful vacation we had, I had missed them so much, and
they were still asleep after staying up past their bed times doing
fireworks
For the 4th of July the night before.
I looked at the shiny new ring on my finger and
I remember thinking to myself that life just doesn't get better than this.
The kids were happy, I was happy. Darcy and I shared friendship,
Love for each other and a deep love and commitment to my children.
We had talked about getting married a lot before we went to Hawaii
but had made it official there. At that moment, I had everything I wanted
in life.
We decided to take our Jet Ski out with Darcy's brother and sister in law,
Wade and Brandy and all the kids.
The idea was that since it was Darcy's last day of vacation,
We wanted to take the kids to do something fun.
We were on the beach at Windmill Cove somewhere between 1:00 and 2:00 in
the afternoon.
I took Tiffany out on the Jet Ski first, Darcy stayed on shore with the
kids.
We took a slow ride where she waved to people as we went by them.
When I got back, Darcy was going out next and asked Scotty and Miranda who
was going to go with him.
They both wanted to go but I told them they had to settle it themselves.
They looked at each other and without even speaking a word,
Began to do the "rock,paper,scissors" game. I commented to Darcy
that I wish he had caught that on video.
I said,"You have just witnessed an unspoken bond between a brother and
sister",
he agreed. Just then, Scotty put his fists up in the air and said,
"YES!"
He had won the ride on the Jet Ski. I gave him a "high five" on
his way to get on the Ski and told him to have fun.
That was the last time I touched or talked to my son.
I went back to our spot on the shore, turning my back to the water and
began to cut sandwiches for Miranda, Tiffany, and I.
We were eating and talking to Wade and Brandy for about 10 minutes
when I looked out at the water. I noticed many people were gathering at the
shore of the small beach area where we were.
Wade and I went to investigate.. I saw a boat
patrol boat in the water with the lights on,
and another boat. I thought a boat was getting a ticket, and didn't think
much of it, and started to walk back to my chair,
When I suddenly realized how still and silent everyone was being.
I turned back and asked a man standing next to me what had happened.
He said that a boat had hit a Jet Ski, as he said that I looked up.
I saw our Jet Ski being towed in..It was sinking
and only the handlebars were sticking up out of the water.
I started screaming. The aftermath was ugly.
I saw things that no mother should ever have to see.
I was eventually taken to San
Juaquin General Hospital
where I was taken to a room marked "Quiet Room".
and was told that there was nothing they could
have done, that Scotty sustained fatal injuries and had died instantly in
the collision.
Life as I know it, ended that day, for all of us.
I stayed at the hospital for a while not knowing what to do.
Darcy was there in critical condition. I couldn't decide whether or not I
wanted to go in and see Scotty or not.
I had seen him at the accident scene. It wasn't pretty.
He had an open head injury from ear to ear.It was a really bad injury that
I didn't want to remember him that way.
Later, when I read the coroner's report, I knew I had made the right
decision.
My girls were still in the waiting room. I didn't know what to tell them..
I would go out every few minutes and tell them that Scotty and Darcy
"are being taken care of'. That wasn't a lie..
They were both being taken care of. I sent them home with Brandy. The
Doctors asked me to go in and see Darcy, but not tell him that Scotty had
been killed.
He was refusing to sign a consent form to go into surgery until he saw me
or Scotty.
I went in and told him that "Scotty is being taken care of" and
to sign the forms.
They took him off to surgery, I went home at about 10:00 pm and sat down on my bed and told my
daughters that their brother had died in the accident.
They were both in shock. I was too.. I think
besides losing Scotty, the single hardest thing I had to do was to tell the
girls..
I remember at the hospital when the woman told me that Scotty had died, the
first thing that went through my head was that I had to take care of my
girls.
I had to find a way to see them through this pain. I didn't know how at the
time, just that I had to.
The next few days were filled with the haze of visiting cemeteries, funeral
homes, and deciding on caskets and music.
We played 2 songs at Scotty's funeral. "The Dance" by Garth Brooks, and "My Heart will go
on" by Celine Dion.
We liked those much better than some of the gospel songs the funeral home
had available.
We wanted them to at least be songs that Scotty had heard and knew.
All the decisions for the funeral and burial were made by Scotty's Dad,
Scott, and I..
We had a messy divorce before that and didn't get along, but when Scotty
died, we decided it wasn't worth it anymore.
We had brought him into this world, we would send
him on his way with dignity.
I am sure Scotty was proud of that.
Darcy was in the hospital for a couple of weeks and could not go to the
funeral.
There were hundreds of people there, of course, but it is all still a blur
to me.
Five years later, I can't even believe this story as I write it. Did my
baby boy, my only son, my Scotty...die in that accident?!?
It is unthinkable! Just like it is to every other bereaved parent.
Darcy and I are not together anymore. Partially because of the accident,
but mostly for many other reasons. I now have a beautiful baby girl named
Haley. I think the girls and I are doing as well as we can be expected. The
girls attend a children's bereavement group,
And I am a Compassionate Friends member. I still have my bad days. When I
do, I call it being in my "dark place". As time has gone by
though, the strong days outnumber the weak ones.
When I first joined T.C.F., I had heard from other parents that were
further along in their grief that I was, that I would always have bad days;
but that one day, although things would never be the same and I would
always miss Scotty, I would be happy again.
It would be a different kind of happy, but a happiness just the same.. It was hard to believe or comprehend at the time, but
it was true.
I measure time differently now: "before" and "after"
(Scotty died).
But my girls and I are surviving and my hope is that warm memories of my
precious Scotty will always comfort us...
~LINKS~
Photos
Poetry for Scotty
Scotty's Sisters
My Mom is a Survivor
Letters from Mom
Hope for the Future
Keeping
our kids safe: information you need to know
Personal Watercraft Safety - not one more
child!
Please take a moment to leave a MESSAGE in
Scotty's guestbook. We treasure the messages and check them daily. Thank
You!
 
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