Ethan Strong: Communities rally to support injured Panther football player

Posted 9/5/19

A typical Tuesday morning at the Ashers’ home started with eggs and bacon for breakfast — protein for Ethan the football player. He yelled “Love you” to his parents as he left …

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Ethan Strong: Communities rally to support injured Panther football player

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A typical Tuesday morning at the Ashers’ home started with eggs and bacon for breakfast — protein for Ethan the football player. He yelled “Love you” to his parents as he left the house at 7:31 a.m. that morning for school.

But as he drove to Powell High School on Aug. 27 for the second day of his senior year, Asher’s truck rolled outside of town and he was severely injured.

Fast forward a week, and his family continues to stay by his side in an intensive care unit in Billings.

“Ethan is laying in his bed fighting for his life. It is quiet and calm, the nurse is shuffling equipment and tending to his pain this morning,” his parents Tiffani and Andy Asher wrote in a Facebook post Tuesday morning.

Asher underwent a four-hour surgery to realign vertebrae in his back on Saturday.

The doctor told the Ashers that the “vertebrae aligned about as good as it could be and his spinal cord and sac around it were ‘whole,’ damaged but whole.”

The family and many others have been praying for God to make Asher “whole” since last week’s crash.

“We prayed for a miracle, and God has heard our cry,” Tiffani and Andy wrote.

The spinal cord has damage, but is no longer severed, the Ashers wrote. Doctors fused some vertebrae in his back, “but said in the thoracic section it won’t limit him much on motion.”

“We have a long road ahead, still have some hurdles, but God has heard our cries,” the Ashers wrote.

They wrote Tuesday that it had been a few slow days with “no change in his brain or head trauma.”

“The CT scan from yesterday showed no change in the damage done, but we know and stand firm in God,” the Ashers wrote.

Another surgery on Tuesday went well as doctors removed most of the fluid from Asher’s chest, and set two drain tubes for the rest.

“He is breathing on his own completely, using the ventilator for oxygen only,” Tiffani and Andy posted. “He is a fighter and continues to impress us with every hour … God is continuing to move through Ethan’s journey and we praise him always!”

As a key member of the Panther football team, Asher was working to again earn the starting quarterback position. On Friday night, his teammates carried his No. 3 jersey during a scrimmage in Riverton. After winning against the Wolverines, players and coaches from both teams gathered on the field to pray for Asher beneath the bright lights.

The moment offered a glimpse of the camaraderie and widespread support for the Ashers occurring throughout the Powell community, across Wyoming and beyond.

 

Fundraiser at Friday night’s football game

Panthers of all ages, rival teams and people across the region have united to support Ethan Asher and his family in the days following the wreck.

“Thank you all for the pouring out of love that is happening in Powell and all over our great state and from what we have been hearing in other states as well,” wrote Tiffani and Andy Asher. “We are continually being asked what people can do and really all we ask is to share Ethan’s story and continue praying. I can’t express what this means to our family.”

Businesses in Powell and throughout the area have organized fundraisers for the Ashers, already raising thousands of dollars to assist the family with medical costs and other expenses.

More fundraisers are planned, including during the Panther football team’s home opener versus the Worland Warriors on Friday night. The Powell Athletic Roundtable will be tailgating with Powell Valley Healthcare, serving walking tacos, a drink, and a cookie for $5 a plate. All proceeds will go to the Asher family. Kick-off is at 7 p.m. Friday.

The PHS National Honor Society is partnering with the football team and athletic department to pass buckets through the stands at halftime to raise money as well.

An anonymous donor will match all money earned Friday evening up to $10,000, PHS Athletics Director Scott McKenzie said Wednesday.

On Thursday, Sept. 12, the Lady Panthers volleyball team will host Team Ethan night during their home opener. T-shirts were sold for fans to wear that night, with proceeds going to the Ashers.

In addition to support from fellow Panther teams, the NWC Trappers, Riverton Wolverines, Worland Warriors, Douglas Bearcats, Natrona County Mustangs and Rocky Mountain Bears have organized fundraisers in recent days. Donations were also collected at the Cody Nite Rodeo and Meeteetse Labor Day celebration over the weekend.

New Life Church of Powell set up a benevolence fund for the Ashers. To donate online, visit http://newlifepowell.com/giving and click on “Donate here,” then select “Asher Benevolence Fund.” Cards can be sent to: The Asher family C/O New Life Church of Powell, P.O. Box 782, Powell, WY 82435 or dropped off at the church, located at 185 S. Tower Blvd. in Powell.

The Ashers are posting updates about Ethan in the Facebook group #EthanStrong.

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