Anthony Nichols, resident of Grandview Hills, is grateful his wife and daughter are home from the hospital and recovering after they were in a car accident on Saturday. He is also thankful for the community and family support during the crash and afterwards, as he described the situation as numbing. 

Nichols posted his gratitude to the community on Nextdoor on Saturday night while spending the night on the foldout bed at Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas with his daughter Zoe. His wife Stephanie had been released.

“Thank you so, so much…. By the grace of God, all are (relatively speaking) okay. 

I keep seeing the scene… car parts everywhere… people everywhere, rushing here and there to make sure the best care is taken of everyone involved… while attempting to stay safe themselves. It was surreal. 

I look at the picture every hour or so and know that today is a blessed day in the history of our family… a day that doesn’t end so well for so many families. 

Thank you sweet Lord for your grace and mercy – for my living, breathing wife and daughter, for my sons and my daughter-in-law, for Grammy and Grampy, and for our community who rallied and supported a few strangers in need, for the kind neighbor who called and so gently and thoughtfully alerted me of the accident, for the first responders, the ER reception, nurses and doctors, the hospital janitor lady who came in and smiled so kindly and all those who will continue to support us through the night and day to come. 

I am/we are so humbled and so blessed.”

 After a couple of days of after-care and grappling with all the insurance and outpatient requirements, Nichols gave Four Points News an update on what happened that day and shared how Stephanie and Zoe are doing as of midweek. Here is his updated in his words:

I learned of the accident only a couple minutes after it occurred, at about 12:40 p.m. on Saturday the 7th, from a concerned resident of Grandview Hills who helped Stephanie while she was still very disoriented in the car. 

I was at the intersection of 620 and Four Points so very close when the call came in. Of course, I had no idea how serious the accident was. 

When I got there, it was immediately clear that Stephanie and Zoe were struck as they turned left onto Wilson Parke from northbound 620. 

It was terrible to see the damage to Zoe’s side of the vehicle. Thankfully her door was struck toward the back so the bulk of the intrusion (~18-inches) was in the back seat. 

As I got to the car I could see that Zoe was receiving care from a  lady who really seemed to know what she was doing. I saw that Zoe’s door had been pushed about 8″ into the cabin and that while she was hurt, she wasn’t crushed, so I held her hand for a minute and reassured her that I’d be back but needed to check on (mom).

When I circled around to Steph, I found her receiving excellent care so I let her know I was there and would be with Zoe. The rest is really a blur of ensuring both were getting care and knew I was there and tracking their progress… that I was with them. 

I was asked to drive to the hospital separately so they could ride in the same ambulance so I left immediately. On my way to the car, I noticed the driver of the other car; she was sitting and had a painful looking bump on her head. I can only imagine how she must have felt after such a trauma and hope she’s healing well.

Once I got to Dell Children’s, I learned that Stephanie was rerouted to Dell Seton ER because of some complications en route. She joined us a couple hours later when she was cleared after several x-rays and a CT scan. Zoe, on the other hand, was admitted to Dell Children’s and discharged around 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Both are home now, Stephanie’s nursing many deep bruises (physically and emotionally), and what appears to be a concussion that went undiagnosed on Saturday. I took her ARC to get a second opinion because she’d been struggling with nausea, dizziness and increasing pressure in her head.

Zoe’s recovering as expected. She has a ton of back/shoulder/hip/chest pain and we’re scheduled back at Dell Children’s radiology and with her cardiologist on Friday for another CT scan and EKG. They’re concerned about tiny bruises on her heart and lungs and some damage to an artery in her neck. Friday’s appointments will either confirm that they’re healing well or need additional attention. We expect and are praying for the former.

We’re so thankful for the support of our neighbors, friends, relatives and all those Good Samaritans who continue to send encouragement. 

We do also hope and pray the other driver has received any care she needed and is recovering well.