My Snow Skiing Accident in West Virginia Monday

  I was in a ski accident Monday morning Feb. 6, 2012 at Snowshoe Mt. Resort, in WV.  I had been saving for this trip and looking forward to it for months.  It was kind of a Christmas/Birthday gift from my wife, and I took a young father from my church, Scott Dicke, one of our trustees, as he loves snow skiing also and had never ski'd outside of Ohio before. Monday was Scott's birthday, so this was his birthday present from his wife.   I wanted him to experience one of the best in the East, and Coletta INSISTED that I take another guy with me "in case something would happen."

I had a new goose down black ski jacket, a new bright green florescent shell wind breaker, new gloves that matched my helmet and I was ready to take on the "Double Black Diamonds!"   My first skiing for this winter, and Scott wanted to start out on the beginner slopes until he got warmed up.   That was fine with me, cos the beginner slopes at Snowshoe are long and beautiful and have some pitch to them also.

We were both acting like Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed as we were strapping our helmets on and shoving our gloves on at my mini-van.  Temps just under freezing and the sun was bouncing off the granulated snow.  We beat most people to the chair lift, did a few stretches, and snapped our boots into our skis.  Scott asked me to lead the way, because he didn't know which slope to start with.

We took two long runs and had a blast.  At Snowshoe, one major difference is that you start at the top where the lodge's, restaurants and shops are, you park up on the top and then ski down to a mountain lake.  THEN, you ride the chair lift back up where all the cars and stores are. 

On our third run down a beginner slope, it was pretty steep to start out with, so I let the "steep" gravitate me to a high speed and then when the steep slope leveled, I hit a thick groove of granulated snow and instead of the ski's just crashing though the "ice snow,"  it caught my sky tip on my right ski, and as the ski's stayed, I went.

I rolled about three times and the impact was so hard I think I would have cracked my skull,  but thank the Lord, I wear a helmet.  Scott stopped beside me asking me if I was O. K. and I tried to get up, could not, and I said, no, I'm hurt.  I thought my back was broke.  I asked Scott, my friend from our church to stick my ski's uphill from my body in the snow making a cross with the ski tips pointing upward towards the ski and holler for help.

The ski patrol took me on a board sled to  a chair lift and hauled me up to the top of the mountain in a mummy sled strapped to a straight board with my neck in a brace.  An Ambulance took me to Pocahontas Memorial hospital in Buckeye, WV.

The E.R. staff pulled my outer clothes off of me and started doing all the normal checks for ski injuries.  Monday, I had 2 E.K. G's and all total in this ordeal, I had three CAT Scans.  After nearly a day strapped to a hard board with a neck brace on, the E. R. staff at the Pocahontas Hospital gave me morphine and at the same time a nitroglycerin pad on my chest due to my severe back, chest and arm pains.  The E R. doc thought possibly my heart was bruised.

I started to pass out from the morphine and nitro, so E R did a "stat" and about 7 hospital staff people ran into the E. R. and started working on me like crazy with some real FEARFUL LOOKS.  Most "good Christians" would tell you they weren't afraid at all.   I will tell you the truth.  I was horrified!  But, I prayed to Jesus and asked Him to comfort me and give me peace.  I told him I was ready if he wanted me (but, I didn't want to go to heaven right then).  Jesus did give me peace!  

The E. R. Staff  were all being quiet, whispering and asking me some very serious questions.    My blood pressure dropped like an elevator going down to the basement and my heart rate also dropped rapidly.  Life Flight was called from W V University Medical Hospital Trauma Center.

A rain storm came and the chopper could not land at Pocahontas Hospital, so the Helicopter dispatcher asked ambulance to drive to Buckhannon Airport where the storm had not come yet and the skies were clear.  The ambulance took me on a 2 hour drive.  The chopper and medical flight team met us at the Buckhannon Airport and flew me on to Morgantown, WV.  I learned that I was being taken to the top trauma team in the state of West Virginia. 

They called in a Priority "One" from the chopper and after landing on the hospital roof, the Medi-flight nurses ran me into the Trauma E. R. due to possible heart trouble and the allergic reaction I had to the morphine and nitro.  The next morning, the Trauma Center chaplain and the main Trauma doctor of the hospital both explained to me that when they get a "P-One" on their communication radios from a chopper that that means, "Move all the other patience out of the way and bring in your main trauma team now!"

I thank God for Scott Dicke for sacrificing your birthday ski trip to stay by my side through such a nightmare, and a wonderful church family and friends around the world praying for me. Someone asked me,  "When did you know you were going to be O. K."  And I said when my beautiful blue eyed "Coletta" walked into my hospital room!  Thanks also to Deacon Fabian Canales and his wife, Dolores from our church for driving my lovely wife to West Virginia to be with me, and the return trip back to Van Wert, Ohio.  Another huge blessing is that  I just learned yesterday that I had people in China and Africa praying for me.

However, of all of this,  probably the thing that has stirred my heart the most is that my brother, Johnny who has been a Medi-flight pilot in OK City, OK for years learned about my accident and already knew that the medical flight company that flew me is the same company Johnny flies for.   He has called me 4 times, then waited until my helicopter flight crew got back to their base airport in Buckhannon, WV.  and called them at 2:00 in the morning to thank them for flying his "little preacher brother" to help save my life.

I'm home now and getting better every day.  I can't say enough to thank you for praying for Coletta and me through all of this.  I'm closer to God now, and all my pastoral E. R. calls in the future will never be the same.  I also picked up several new sermon illustrations and have some good used ski equipment for sale.

I only broke two ribs right behind my collar bones, my chest, back and shoulders are very bruised, but, my head and neck are O K,  and PRAISE GOD,   my back is not broke.  

Thanks for your phone calls, Emails and prayers.

Love in Christ,

Jim Burns, Pastor

Liberty Baptist Church

Van Wert, OH

PS.  We have met our health insurance deductible!

Email:  jimmycburns@aol.com 

 

SCOOPING SNOW IS BETTER THAN MOWING GRASS!

My wife, Coletta and I along with our youngest son home from China just returned from a New Year's vacation last night.  Monday, we left sunny Daytona Beach, Florida with 75 degrees, flew in one of the  "two" planes out of Daytona Beach Monday, changed planes at Charlotte, NC. After our second plane was "de-iced," we took off and landed at Nashville where our mini-van waited on us.  (All other Daytona Beach flights were canceled due to the ice and snow in Atlanta).

After battling the ice and snow driving from Nashville, TN to Ohio last night, we were welcomed by over 4 inches of snow!  I just got in from scooping snow for about an hour and loved it!  One of the blessings of colder temperatures and living in N. W. Ohio is the snow and cold temperatures keep the grass from growing.  I hate mowing grass (with a push mower) but love the snow!  The colder temperatures also kill the mosquitoes and bugs, plus as far north as we are, we really don't have hardly any snakes!  (No poisonous ones at all and none at all in winter)!

It's good to be home.  Can't wait to see everyone at church tonight!

That's Something to Think About!   Email:  jimmycburns@aol.com

BURNS' SNOW SKIING AT 57

I'm the guy on the right in the "black and blue."  I met this Ohio "Buckeye" from Toledo skiing alone like me, so we spent the afternoon going the slopes together.  This was the last time I skied at Winter Park, CO.  For the first time in my life, I skied above the timber line.  JUST SNOW EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK!  It was a blast.  But, I kinda feel like the "Pillsbury Dough Boy" in this picture.  I'm hoping to get a new ski jacket for Christmas this year.  Bright GREEN so the Ski Patrol can see me better in the Avalanche!

I'm Jim Burns and this is "Something to Think About!"       Email:  jimmycburns@aol.com

KEDGING

Webster's Dictionary defines "kedging" as: to move (a ship) by means of a line attached to a small anchor dropped at the distance and in the direction desired. An example of this would be if a sailing vessel was near a harbor, and lost wind, a crew member could place an anchor in a safety boat with a rope tied to the sailing vessel, row into the harbor, drop an anchor and "kedge" the sailing vessel into the harbor by pulling it in with the rope. The process of "pulling the ship in" is very difficult, but the reward is the sailing vessel or "ship" comes to you safely in the harbor.

How can "kedging" help you in your personal life? To me, "kedging" to improve my life or the quality of my life would be to find some activity or event that I absolutely love, and do things to make that dream (event or activity) come true. Most of us only get to go on vacation once or twice a year if any. But if you can find something that is an absolute delight for you to do, you can look forward to that event several months in advance. Any of you that are in a high stress situation in your education or work know that if you don't get away from the pressure every now and then, you will likely snap or "burn out."

A dear Pastor friend of mine in Kansas who is now in his 70's loved golfing. Thus he went golfing sometimes twice a week, weather permitting. He would exercise, practice, take golf lessons and meditate on how he could improve his golfing techniques as he would be "looking forward" (kedging) towards his next golf game with other Pastor friends. Although some might criticize my Pastor friend for being out on the golf course twice a week, it was this time of fresh air, fellowship with other Christian men, exercise and "stress relieving" that very likely helped keep him in the ministry for now over 35 years. He is still serving in a church today even in his 70's, relatively healthy, and I might mention, he still golfs!

I do not like to exercise. My "flesh" does not want to get out of bed on a cold, rainy morning, wrap up and go jogging or hit the gym! But I absolutely love to snow ski! If you have ever been snow skiing when you were really out of shape, you know how miserable you were out on the slopes, and how sore your muscles were the week after your ski trip! Thus, as winter approaches, I jog, go to the Wellness Exercise Center in our town, and do aerobics and weight training with my first "ski trip" in mind as I work out! (I don't have a trip scheduled yet, but, I do hope to go skiing sometime this winter)!

It's the "kedging" of the weekly body work out routines that makes my skiing safer and more fun. The side benefit of my "kedging" is that I feel better mentally, emotionally and physically. These three things help me minister better spiritually. All of this "kedging" also helps fight discouragement and some feelings of depression that (yes) sometimes even pastors deal with. It gives you a feeling of accomplishment and well being. It also helps you stay alive and adds much "quality" to your life. (Have you ever noticed that when you get out of town and do something to get you mind off your pressures and problems you come home refreshed and ready to face the battles again)? This is why I believe "kedging" is so important.

So get out there and discover some good, healthy, wholesome fun! Discover an event or activity that you can aim towards and look forward to all year long. From the time you start "dreaming" about that trip, what you do to help reel that trip in is called, "kedging."

I'm Jim C. Burns, and that's something to think about! Email: jimmycburns@aol.com

Thanks LBC for our 13 Years of Service!

I have been blessed with a wonderful wife who has served with me faithfully in Washington, D. C., West Virginia, Kansas and Ohio for 33 years. Of the four churches where Coletta and I have served, we have been at Liberty Baptist of Van Wert, Ohio longer than any. This week being our Thirteenth Anniversary, I thank the Lord for the privilege of pastoring some of the most wonderful Christians in all the world!

I'm Jim Burns and that's something to think about!