Debbie and Walt Gard of Springfield began their day as usual on July 31, 2002. Debbie stayed at home with four of their children and Walt headed for his job at Advance Auto Parts in Springfield.

On this summer day, Debbie was watching two other children and mowing the family's large grass lot.

With just two rows left to mow, Debbie went into the house to get a drink of water and talk briefly to her sister who was watching the kids indoors. Debbie's nine-year-old daughter asked if she could mow the last two rows. Because she had been trained in using the riding mower, Debbie agreed.

It seemed like just seconds later. Her daughter ran into the house yelling that she "had killed Adam," her five-year-old brother.

Debbie sprinted across the yard and saw Adam behind the riding mower. A quick look told her he had serious injuries to his right foot. Later they learned that Adam had been hiding behind the mower when his sister backed up over his foot. The mower blades sheared off his toes.

"I just started screaming," remembers Debbie. She yelled to her sister to call 911 and the Springfield emergency squad arrived soon after.

She and her husband met the ambulance at Mercy Medical Center in Springfield. After several minutes, doctors told them that the transport team from Dayton Children's was on the way to pick up Adam. Debbie rode with Adam in Children's mobile intensive care unit while Walt followed in the car. The trauma team was waiting when Adam arrived.

"I remember a lot of doctors and nurses taking care of Adam in the trauma room. Because Adam had been treated as an infant by Dr. Albert (Michael Albert, MD, orthopedic surgeon), Debbie requested that he be called.

"While I don't remember much about that day, I do remember that the nurses and doctors were so nice. They made it a point to talk to me to see if I was OK and to let me know what was going on."

After three surgeries and two and a half weeks at Children's, Adam went home. Today, Adam is an active six-year-old who still sees Dr. Albert for follow-up exams.

"He is totally accepting of his injury," says Debbie. When she was cutting the toenails on his left foot recently, Adam said, "I'm really lucky." When Debbie asked why, he pointed out that he only had to have his toenails cut on one foot!