Four years ago Sean Carter, then 22, was out with a few friends the Saturday night before Easter. He and two friends left a bar in a drunken state and piled into a truck. On the drive back to Sean’s apartment the driver lost control of the vehicle and slammed into a tree.
Carter suffered a brain injury and was in a coma for more than 30 days. When he woke up he had lost the ability to walk and talk. He has to use a computer to talk and a motorized wheelchair to move around.
Carter and his mother Jenny travel to schools all over the country speaking to young people about the dangers of mixing drinking and driving.
April 30 they spoke to the students of Msgr. Kelly Catholic High School, St. Anne Catholic School and St. Anthony Cathedral Basilica School, all Beaumont.
Carter relayed stories of his high school experiences with drinking to the students while a video of his physical therapy played behind him.
“When I was your age I never thought that something like this could happen to me. Even after I ran my mother’s car into a field my senior year of high school, I still didn’t get the message about drinking and driving,” Carter said.
Carter told the students about his day-to-day life with his mother, who now takes care of him 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“My mother is a wonderful person, and I don’t tell her enough how much I appreciate her. She has sacrificed a lot in order to be with me at all times and take care of me,” Carter said.
Jenny Carter explained that because of the nature of Sean’s injuries there is always hope that he will get better and better.
“We were very blessed that his mind was intact and he still had the same thoughts he would normally have. Since it’s a brain injury versus a paralysis, his brain has to figure out how to rewire itself,” she said.
Carter only had limited use of his left arm and hand up until August when he began to regain feeling and movement in his right arm. He has no idea when or if he will ever regain even limited use of his legs.
“When I was in high school, drinking was the thing to do if you wanted to be popular. I liked having friends, but if I had to choose I would do it all differently. I don’t know about you guys, but I was quite fond of walking and talking,” Carter said.
