Greater is He That is in Me
Beacon Writer Celebrating Miracle Anniversary
Deidra Bowling-Meade
The Ashland Beacon
God will carry you through the storm. Isaiah 43:2
What do you do when the unexpected happens and things are out of your control? Your life just keeps getting hit with tragedy from being in an accident, scarred physically and mentally, facing financial turmoil, and not knowing what the future holds. Would you give up? How can you stay standing when things around you seem to be falling apart?
Pamela Hall faced an unexpected tragedy on September 7, 2017 that changed her life forever. Hall recalled, “I drove to the end of my street in Cannonsburg and across Route 60 to Burger King to get a sandwich. As I was driving back across Route 60, I supposedly ran a red light and was hit by a truck on the passenger side. The first responder who got to me first, whom I’ve known for over 25 years, didn’t recognize me.
My husband, Tim, had heard all of the sirens and texted me to see if I was okay. When I didn’t respond, he called. A police officer saw my phone and called the number back, telling Tim about the accident and that I was injured. When Tim got to the scene at the end of our street, the first responder realized it was me that he’d been treating. They told Tim that I shouldn’t have lived.”
Less than 15 minutes from her home and doing the simplest task of running to get food turned into a day of total chaos. Hall continued, “I was airlifted to Cabell Huntington Hospital in an unconscious state. They wouldn’t allow Tim to see me before they got me in the air. When he arrived at the hospital, he was told that I had broken ribs, two fractured vertebra, a lacerated kidney, a broken left arm, a wound on the inside of the arm caused by my arm falling out of the window and the vehicle rolling on my arm, and a brain bleed massive enough to cause speech impairment.
When they let him back to see me, he walked past the treatment room because he didn’t recognize me. We’ve been married over 30 years and known each other since second grade. When he walked into the room, they were unwrapping the bandage that the paramedics had put on my arm. One technician asked the other if they were going to try to save my arm since the wound was so massive. Tim spoke up and told them, ‘Yes, we are saving her arm, and there’s no further discussion about that. Are we clear?’”
Can you imagine being battered beyond recognition and someone still thinking that a part of you isn’t worth saving? Thankfully, not only did Pam’s husband fight for her but a higher power intervened on her behalf.
Hall shared, “They were going to drill a hole in my skull to relieve pressure from the brain bleed. The doctor finally decided to monitor me overnight and unless it had to be done emergently through the night, he would re-evaluate and decide the next morning whether to do the procedure. The next morning when the doctor came into the ICU room, he told Tim that he wasn’t sure what had happened, but the bleed was now only about a thimble full in size so no procedure was needed. I also stopped passing blood from the lacerated kidney the day after the wreck.
I never had any problems or pain from the fractured vertebra, and to this day I can’t tell you where my ribs were broken. I never had the first pain from them. The doctor may not have been sure what happened, but I know exactly what happened. People were praying for me, and God touched me! I am a miracle!”
Hall spent a total of four days in the ICU and 10-12 days in the hospital. She was mostly sedated when in the ICU and had no recollection of the wreck. The one thing she did remember was the power of prayer. Hall shared, “When I would occasionally wake up, I would see people who had come to pray for me.”
The road to recovery was long and difficult. Hall still had to worry about the possibility of losing her arm, but prayer once again got her through. Hall explained, “Surgery was performed on my arm to clean up the wound and put in a plate just above my wrist where it was broken. They put a wound vac on my arm to help promote healing. I had very little flesh on the inside of my arm. The main tendon was showing through.
After my release from the hospital, I was going to KDMC to the Wound Center three days each week for several months to change the wound vac dressing on my arm, an excruciating procedure. I was referred to a doctor in Louisville, a specialist that does only hands and arms, and had two more surgeries there. The specialist scheduled the first surgery there, to cover the tendon. He explained that it had to be covered with live tissue, not synthetic material. He would determine during the surgery if there was enough tissue remaining on my arm to cover the tendon. If not, he would harvest tissue from my hip or thigh. I was dreading that because I had heard that it was extremely painful. Three days before the surgery, I was told at the Wound Center to be aware that the specialist would indeed have to harvest tissue. There was not enough flesh left to cover the tendon. However, the day before the surgery, there were at least five churches, if not more, that had special prayer for me during their Sunday service. On Monday after the surgery, the specialist came into the recovery room with a big smile on his face, telling me that he was able to get the tendon covered with the tissue that was there so he didn’t have to harvest any. Another miracle!
I had one more surgery with the specialist, where he did a skin graft to close the wound. He took a small rectangle of skin, the very top layer, from my thigh, about the size of a cell phone. It was relatively painless and healed very quickly. It isn’t even noticeable on my thigh that any skin was taken. I have a terrible scar on my arm, but still have an arm and about 90%-95% functionally. I’ll take it!”
Not all of the miracles that occurred were physically related. Hall was off work nearly five months without pay; she was the main source of income for the family. Hall gave praise, “We never asked anyone for a penny, but people came out of the woodwork to give to us. Family members, friends, neighbors we didn’t even know, even classmates that I had graduated high school with nearly 40 years previous to my wreck. People brought food they had prepared, groceries and even money, to give to us. Friends held a benefit at church. A friend loaned us a vehicle until we could purchase another. We weren’t late on anything. It was amazing!”
God directed people to the Hall family who served as sources of encouragement for them. Hall continued, “Phone calls, visits, texts, and cards from friends, some that were even friends of my parents, kept me uplifted during this time. A dear friend who is like a sister to me came every day until I was out of ICU, then continued to visit every few days for months. A beautician friend came and washed my hair while I was still in ICU. I had pieces of glass from the broken window and dried blood still in my hair, so it was a big deal that she came and did that.”
Hall received some advice from a preacher friend who came to visit her. Hall recalled, “He told me that he’d been watching the Weather Channel to keep up with news concerning a hurricane that was hitting Florida at that time since he had family that lived there. He said he had a difficult time understanding why the weather broadcaster would go outside to broadcast in the hurricane force winds instead of staying inside in the relative safety of the studio as he reported. He said it finally hit him that the reason was because the broadcaster had convinced himself that when the storm was over and the winds were gone, he would still be standing. My friend grinned at me and said, ‘Pam, that’s what God is saying to you today. When this storm you’re going through is over, and the winds that are tossing you to and fro are gone, you will still be standing because God’s hand is upon you!’ And as he said, I am still standing six years later!”
God had a plan and continues to use Pam Hall for His work and glory. She serves as a writer for the Ashland Beacon and Account Executive with Kindred Communications. One of her greatest achievements is her vocal and songwriting ability. She was part of the trio called New Journey with Nancy Banfield and John Darin Rowsey. Hall has had her songs recorded by The Cathedrals, Karen Peck & New River, the Guardians and others. Hall has also served as a guest speaker at several churches and women’s retreats to share her miracle story.
Hall concluded, “Although it was the most harrowing experience of my life, there were so many things that were just a ‘God wink,’ so to speak. He made Himself real. As for advice for those going through hardships, just remember that it won’t last forever. God is faithful, and He won’t drop you!”
Hall’s story are a reminder from the words of a song titled “Praise His Name,” by Jeff and Sheri Eastering,
When you're up against a wall
And your mountain seems so tall
And you realize that life's not always fair
You can run away and hide
Let the old man decide
Or you can change your circumstances
With a prayer
When everything falls apart
Praise His name
When you have a broken heart
Raise your hands and say
"Lord, You're all I need
You're everything to me"
And He'll take the pain away
When it seem you're all alone
Praise His name
When you feel you can't go on
Just raise your hands and say
"Greater is He that is within me"
And you can praise the hurt away
If you'll just praise His name
Hall continues to praise God’s name for His faithfulness, mercy and love. Hall made it through her storm because she realized God is greater than any trial she will ever face. We are thankful to have Hall a part of the Beacon family.