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TERRORIST ATTACK.........

"The Amanda Hale Story"

On September 11, 2001 the world watched in horror as hijacked jet-liners, controlled by terrorist, plummeted into the World Trade Center buildings and the Pentagon, while a fourth crashed outside Pittsburgh.

Thousands of innocent people lost their lives.

Thousands of families were directly affected.

Millions, yes billions, of dollars are recorded in damages and loss revenue.

Story after story of unimaginable horror flashed across the airways as we learned about the fate of domestic flights filled with ordinary people, just like you and I, going about the normal routine of living. We heard how these flights were commandeered by terrorists and deliberately flown into suicidal destruction.

Our world will never be the same again.

The freedom to travel will never be quite as free again.

Border crossings have come under more careful scrutiny.

New initiatives have been put in place to protect people and national security.

Yes, ....People’s lives were changed forever on September 11, 2001.

On September 21st, 2001 eleven days later the lives of Glenda and Irving Hale, Our lives, were also changed forever.

At 1:12 AM Glenda and I received a call that no parent ever is prepared to receive. As Pastors we were accustomed to be called by the local hospital or parishioners, who, because of some emergency, needed pastoral guidance and counseling. So receiving a call after midnight had some familiarity to us. But when Glenda took that call it wasn’t the local hospital calling, or the familiar voice of a congregational member. She did, however, recognize the voice, though she had only heard it once or twice before. It was Ron Kipicko, Chaplain of Spring Arbor University in Michigan. Spring Arbor University was where our daughter, Amanda, attended. His words were, “Mrs. Hale this is Ron Kipicko. Amanda has been involved in a serious car accident. She is being taken to University Hospital in Ann Arbor. Can you come immediately? I will meet you there.”

In a matter of minutes we were dressed, had contacted a friend to alert him to pray, and we were out the door.

Our nightmare had begun!

It was the beginning of a long journey into darkness and uncertainty. As we drove those kilometers in the early morning hours, sometimes we recounted what we had heard by phone, other times we verbalized our fears and then there were long periods of silence, when we were either praying or visualizing what we might be driving into.

Terrorism had invaded our family!

At 11:57 PM on September 20th (3 minutes before midnight) our daughter Amanda was involved in a car crash caused by an impaired driver and died as a result of severe trauma to her head at 9:07 PM on September 21st. She was returning to her dorm-room at Spring Arbor University after child-setting for a family in Jackson, a community just 15 minutes away.

Lest you think that this was some big interstate highway or something akin to the 401.....it wasn’t. She was just a couple of minutes from the safety of her dorm room, right in the town of Spring Arbor.

Amanda was following the dream of her life. She wanted to attend Spring Arbor University in Michigan, a Fine Arts Christian University, to pursue a degree in music and teaching.In fact she was so determined to go to Spring Arbor, it was the only university or college she applied to after completing high school. She was majoring on two instruments, trumpet and piano.

Music was central to all she did. And she especially loved jazz!

Her passion was one day to be a teacher of music in our school system. She loved Spring Arbor University and what it stood for. She loved the students and the staff. She feasted on the Christian atmosphere she encountered there.

She loved life!

She loved God!

She loved being a university student!

She loved people!

Amanda knew what she wanted to do with her life.... During her first term she recorded her goals for her life.....

Goals:

*To expose students to the world of music

*To teach at the secondary school level

*To positively influence the lives of those in my classroom

*To be a light for Christ in the public school system

*To be a role model for teenagers

*To be an encourager

*To create a fun and effective learning environment

*To be sincere in my words and actions

*To be enthusiastic even when I’m not

“Success lies not so much in the particular method, but rather in the persistent and consistent practice.”

On September 21st, 2001, the first day of fall, everything changed. Amanda’s dreams disappeared as if they had never existed.
Amanda became the next victim of an act of terrorism!
Our family became a victim of terrorism!
Our family was ripped apart!
We (the Hale family) became victims of one of the worst possible nightmares a family has to endure. On September 21st, 2001 at 9:07 PM we said goodbye to our one and only daughter. Amanda was just 20 years old, a second year university student with all of the possibilities of life ahead of her. But it was not to be!
She was robbed of her life goals!
We were robbed of our daughter!
Society was robbed of a potential positive influence.

She was driving home, just before midnight on September 20th ,proud that she had earned $10 bucks for babysitting....

Amanda was an independent young lady who wanted to contribute as much as possible to her education costs. Plus she needed to keep gas in that car, she called her Cadillac, or provide for another Steak n’ Shake meal with her friends. As she leisurely drove that familiar section of highway leading into Spring Arbor she was unaware that her life was about to be snuffed out. Maybe she was singing along to one of her music tapes or humming the latest tune for Chapel Band, one of the high points of the beginning of her second year. She was playing trumpet in the Chapel Worship Band. In her words, “Dad it is awesome! You have to come and hear us sometime.”

At the same time along that same stretch of roadway, M-60, another driver was approaching from the opposite direction, travelling at a terrific speed. Another driver who had no business operating a vehicle.... in fact his license was under suspension.
He had three previous impaired driving convictions....
but it was the same old story for him.
He had consumed one to many, actually several to many, for his blood alcohol level would later show he was far beyond the legal limit.

Driving a car he didn’t own,
at a speed he couldn’t control,
his brain muddled by alcohol’s grip,
passing whatever came in his path,
he was headed toward our daughter, Amanda.
As he approached the top of a slight incline he veered to his right onto the gravel, clipped a mailbox, and somewhere within his dulled mind he sensed something wasn’t just right, but not sure what, he pulled the wheel to the left bringing the car back unto the pavement.

But he was traveling too fast...
his mind was too foggy...
his response was too slow!
His mind dulled with alcohol!
His car went into a counterclockwise spin and plummeted toward the lights of an oncoming car. It was our daughter, Amanda.

Maybe he saw the lights of Amanda’s car, maybe he didn’t. There was nothing he could do now....it was too late!
He should have listened, but it was too late.
He should have learned his lesson, but it was too late.
He should have taken the advice of others, but it was too late.
He shouldn’t have been drinking, but it was too late.
He shouldn’t have gotten behind the wheel, but it was too late.
It was too late.....he was about to become a killer! A murderer!
He was about to terrorize a family he had never met or even heard about.
He was about to take out the life of a innocent young woman.
He was about to rob society of another jewel.
He was about to create another glaring sickening statistic.

Amanda saw the lights, saw the erratic behavior of the oncoming car. I can almost hear her saying out loud, “What is he doing?” But at the speed he was traveling, spit seconds were not enough for her to avoid the collision. She swerved to the right and braked...but it was too late!


I have frequent flashbacks, though I wasn’t there, of what Amanda saw in those last seconds. It haunts me to know she saw what was about to happen!

The approaching lights....
the sound of the impact...
and the crunching steel...
the strange sensations....
the nauseating smells.....
then blackness.


The impact of the oncoming car forced both cars off the road and into the ditch. The point of impact was right on Amanda’s door.


We are told that it took about 15 minutes for the rescue team to cut away the metal to get Amanda out. It seems that she had already stopped breathing for they had to insert a tube into her throat for her to breathe. She was hurried to Foote Hospital in Jackson, just minutes away, but the extent of her injuries were so severe she was moved by air ambulance to University Hospital in Ann Arbor where they specialize in neurosurgery.

But no amount of skill or medical expertise would be able to correct the injuries that had been inflicted upon Amanda. Not even her dad could fix this one. The impact to the left of her forehead and several fractures to the back of her skull were causing uncontrollable swelling of her brain. Early discussions with the surgeon after we arrived were not promising, but there was a little hope if they could only relieve the pressure on the brain. At approximately 8:30 AM on Friday morning, September 21st, 2001, the first day of fall, the surgeon sat across from us and said, “We have done all that we are able to do. The outlook is very bleak, I don’t think she is going to make it. Because of the swelling we feel she has already suffered some brain damage and this will continue throughout the day as the pressure continues to build. Even if by some miracle she does come out of this she will never be the Amanda you have known. I’m sorry!”

Let me tell you that there are no words to properly describe the feelings and emotions that Glenda and I experienced in that hospital room as we embraced each other and sobbed uncontrollably because we were about to lose our precious daughter. “She is not going to make it!” Do you know how ominous these words sound to a Mom and Dad?

On September 21st, 2001 at 9:07 PM, the first day of fall, we said goodbye to our one and only daughter. She never regained consciousness.
She never opened her eyes to say goodbye.
Never held my hand or gave me another hug and said, “See ya dad, I love you.”
Never laughed her hearty laugh or smiled her sweet smile.
She was only 20 years old, a second year university student with all of the possibilities of life ahead of her. But it was not to be! It had all been snuffed out because of another individual who fell prey to alcohol’s death grip.

Glenda and I have our faith in God. We are both ordained ministers with the Free Methodist Church in Canada. My theology tells me that because of Amanda’s beliefs she has inherited the reward all Christians aspire to.....she is in heaven with the God she loved and served.

We grieve,
we mourn,
we weep,
we hug each other,
we reread the cards and messages.
We give thanks for the kind words and prayers of family and friends.
But we still miss her!
We still question!
We still weep on times!
We still have our bad days!
We still relive the hours surrounding the accident and those last few hours beside her bed with no movement, no response, and tubes and wires everywhere!

Yet I know that we are not alone. For every single day some Mom or dad, some spouse, some brother or sister, some family member, some friend goes through a similar nightmare. For every single day some family, somewhere, is terrorized because of a drunk driver. Some family is split apart because an impaired driver uses a vehicle as a weapon of destruction.

A senseless loss of life occurs because someone is unable to control their desire for alcohol and doesn’t have the sense to avoid getting into a vehicle.

Despite all the ads against it,
despite all the warnings,
despite better judgement and common sense.
People fail to get it into their heads that driving while under the influence is a no-brainer! It’s deadly! But they still get behind the wheel and unleash their terrorism upon society!

What is it that Glenda and I hope to achieve by sharing our story, Amanda’s story, with you?
Are we seeking your sympathy? No.
Are we seeking revenge? No.Though sometimes it’s hard to keep a lid on that one.
Are we seeking an outlet for our anger? No. Though it helps control it.
Are we seeking some accolades for ourselves? No, We’re just another mom and dad with a story to tell. Like so many more out there.
Are we seeking some financial reward? No.
Are we seeking more cards, notes, letters or e-mails? No. We have stacks of them now.
Are we seeking your approval for what we are doing? No. We’ll keep doing this whether you approve or not, because we believe we have a message to deliver.

Then what is it that causes us to relive these details over and over,
to revisit these images one more time....
to once again open the wounds that have been inflicted upon our family....
To talk openly about our Daughter, Amanda?

What we desire is that our story, Amanda’s story, will connect with you in some way. Maybe you are a victim. Maybe you share in a similar heartbreak or carry some of the deep scars we have experienced. Maybe Amanda’s story will be a means of encouragement for you or someone you know.

But the significant connection that would make this whole nightmare of some value, is that the story you have read becomes a deterrent to those of you who might someday be tempted to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after you have been drinking, or maybe you know someone who might do that. You might be in a position to stop someone from becoming a killer.

Our personal desire would be that no one would drink.... That’s highly unlikely to happen. But our prayer is that none of you, or any of your friends, will inflict upon another family what has been inflicted upon us. If you drink and then drive, you are a terrorist! If you have done it and nothing has happened, don’t be proud or even think yourself lucky! Maybe you just haven’t found your target yet!

Does all of this sound kinda harsh....a little abrasive.... a tad uncomfortable... It should! If you drink and drive, or you know someone who does, you should be sweating a little right about now. In fact you should be squirming in your seats. Maybe you should be on your knees giving thanks that you have not killed or injured someone.

When vehicles crash we like to refer to it as an accident. When a drunk driver is responsible for a crash, it is no accident. It is a criminal offence! If death results it’s negligent homicide or second degree murder! Maybe it’s not premeditated....but certainly avoidable!

In our case three charges were laid.
(1) Second degree murder
(2) Driving while impaired causing death
(3) Driving while impaired a repeat offense

The trial by judge and jury brought in a guilty verdict on all three charges. He was sentenced to life in prison.

If you drink and drive, sooner or later you are going to become a killer! Our beloved Amanda was killed by a drunk driver. A tragedy that could have been avoided.


There are enough terrorist in the world today. You don’t need to join their ranks.