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Arielle's recovery anchored in hope

Her bones have mended, but brain injuries linger for a Plant High student struck by a car this past spring.

By ELISABETH DYER
Published September 15, 2006

ODESSA - Jose Serrano figures his daughter Arielle never saw the car that hit her on Dale Mabry Highway in March.

The shock of the impact may be the reason for her lingering brain injuries, he says. Her fractured bones - pelvic and lower right leg - mended flawlessly. But Arielle, 15, is in limbo.

Doctors have described her as in a low response state, said her father, who has become her primary caregiver. "She has her waking times and sleeping times, but she can't get up. She can't do anything for herself."

Twins Arielle and Alexis Serrano had ended flag football practice at Plant High School on March 14. While their mother, LeShea, finished her day as a chemistry teacher at Plant, the girls decided to go for smoothies across the street.

Arielle figured she could make it without waiting for the light. She broke from her sister and friends and darted across three lanes into the path of a car driven by Thomas Howse, who performed CPR on her until paramedics arrived.

Alexis rushed to her sister's side. Their mother came minutes later, along with many students milling about on campus.

Jose got the call at 4 p.m.

"Ever since, our lives have been totally changed," he said. "It's tough for all of us. We're a very close-knit family - it's hard to describe. You never prepare for this."

The family lives in Odessa, but the girls attended Plant to be close to their mother. Both were top students and participated in extracurricular activities at the school. Alexis continues to maintain a 4.24 GPA and is on Plant's dance team.

Jose has worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 22 years.

The girls are their life, he said. "We'd prepared for a lot of things, but never this."

Arielle was taken to Tampa General Hospital with multiple fractures and traumatic brain injury.

Jose stayed with her, sleeping in her room for 3½ months till her release. He hasn't been back to work since the accident, after never missing a day in 22 years.

He drives Arielle to appointments, feeds her through a tube every four hours and sleeps in her bedroom with her.

He takes her for daily physical and speech therapy. She also does nontraditional therapies such as acupuncture and hyperbaric oxygen treatments in which she breathes 100 percent oxygen for an hour five days a week in a pressurized chamber. After her seventh oxygen treatment recently, Arielle moved a leg upon request.

Since leaving the hospital, she appears more relaxed and makes small movements with her hands and legs, her dad said last week. And she responds to voices.

"It's very subtle things, but it's in the right direction," he said.

He clings to hope that she will recover within a year, the family's goal. "Until the brain heals itself, no one can tell you if it will or will not happen."

In the meantime, medical bills flood the Serranos' mailbox.

Their health insurance will cover about a dozen more physical therapy treatments before expiring. The oxygen treatments are not covered and run $5,000 for 20 treatments.

"It's quite expensive, but I have no other choice," Jose said.

Insurance doesn't cover chiropractic or acupuncture treatments nor nurses to fill in for family members. LeShea has returned to teaching at Plant, to maintain the family's finances. They'd rather not consider putting Arielle in a state-run nursing facility.

To help with expenses, Jose set up a donation fund in Arielle's name at Suncoast Schools Federal Credit Union.

Before Arielle's accident, he worked seven days a week at the airport branch post office as a senior supervisor. His banked sick hours from not missing any work have come in handy but eventually will end.

"Who else is going to take care of her? We have family members who help, but I sleep in the room with her at night to tend to her," Jose said.

"As a parent, you do what you've got to do."

Elisabeth Dyer can be reached at edyer@sptimes.com or 813 226-3321.

TO HELP

To help with Arielle Serrano's medical expenses, visit any Suncoast Schools Federal Credit Union, including South Tampa's branch at 2502 S Manhattan Ave., and donate to the Arielle Serrano fund.

[Last modified September 14, 2006, 13:03:19]