Raising Mario Twice

This is the true story of one family's heartfelt encounter with a tragic event. It is also the story of how love can transform a nightmare into a miracle. It was an impossibility that Mario had survived the car crash and yet he had. It took almost a brigade of firemen and "The Jaws of Life" to extract him from the wreck. He was found slumped over the driver’s steering wheel unconscious. He was having trouble breathing and suffered severe traumatic brain injury. On route to the hospital he was ventilated through an oral mouthpiece. The paramedics could not intubate him because his mouth was clenched shut. He was considered brain dead on arrival to the emergency room. The doctors put Mario in an induced coma for twenty-one days. It was not expected that he would live. Many people prayed for Mario and his family and even though Mario lived, he was considered a vegetable with a poor prognosis for any meaningful recovery. With more prayers and healing Mario slowly recovered. After one hundred forty-one days of hospitals, Mario finally responded to a doctor and got into a rehabilitation facility. He stayed in rehab for forty days and finally came home. He wore diapers, couldn't talk, walk, eat, or move most of his body. The first few years of taking care of Mario were extremely challenging. It has been a difficult journey, but inch-by-inch Mario has kept improving. He never gives up and through the love of his family and friends remains happy most of the time. Richard Carlson a friend of Mario's and author of the "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" books said, "Mario is the happiest person I know." And Mario says, "Smile because somebody loves you."