It was the first night in about a week since Kyle O’Rourke slept in his own bed and not in a hospital in Billings, following being hit by a truck on Monday, January 18.
“The first few days of trying to get up and move around were really bad, mainly the fear of experiencing the amount of pain that I was in, was just terrible,” Kyle O’Rourke said.
Kyle underwent a 10-hour-long surgery to address the cracks, breaks, and dislocation in his wrist and hip. Two bones in O’Rourke’s left wrist were broken, requiring plates and screws to be placed.
On the fifth day in the hospital, Kyle rallied the courage to attempt to stand.
“I was just scared, most of all, and just afraid of falling and the pain, but once I got the right mindset I was able to overcome that,” he said.
Rick O’Rourke, Kyle’s father, recalls that night when he got the call that this son was involved in an accident.
“As a parent, you see your kid laying on the asphalt, motionless—you see that smashed up truck and his smashed up bike, and you think ‘Oh my God, my kid is hurt real bad,” he said.
From the Three Forks School District to the local lumberyard owner, to neighbors and more: the community worked together to welcome Kyle back home. A ramp was constructed in front of his home to make it easier for him to get up and down, and a card was signed by members of the school.
“It made me feel really warm inside, knowing that people are really there and care for me,” Kyle said.
