Prineville Man Loses Van, Finds Forgiveness

A Prineville man who spends much of his days in a wheelchair, made an alarming discovery the other day: his specially equipped van is stolen and wrecked by a teenager. On Wednesday, he said while his insurance won’t cover the accident, he’s more worried about the teen.

Crook County sheriff’s deputies say a 15-year-old Prineville boy, whose name has not been released, stole the van early Tuesday morning and crashed it south of town. They say alcohol and speed were factors in the crash, which sent the teen to the hospital with serious injuries.

The owner of the van, Roger Wollam, said the van was especially important because it got him to and from the hospital. He is on dialysis and the van was specially equipped with a ramp to accommodate his wheel chair.

“I would hate for him to die,” Wollam said. “I had nothing to do with it, but it’s kind of like, I have a connection, you know. I should have locked it up, and then maybe he wouldn’t have been able to take it.”

The teen took it on a ride on Highway 27 south of Prineville. Skid marks and spray paint from the crash investigation are still on the road. Deputies said the teen was wearing a seat belt, but the impact of the crash was so intense, he was thrown 80 feet from the van and was found lying unconscious in the field.

Wollam said his insurance covers only liability, not collision. Since the teen was not insured, he thinks he’ll have to seek payment from the parents. But he wants to give them time.

“I though it would be just plain unkind of me to find out where they live and go there yesterday, just hours after it happened,” said Wollam.

As the ordeal continues to unfold, Wollam hopes to get some sort of car. But for now, he said he is more worried about the teenager.

“I hope for one thing, that the boy is okay,” Wollam said. “I hope nothing happens, that he winds up in a wheelchair. He’s only 16.” (Deputies confirmed Wednesday that an initial news release was in error and the boy is 15.)

Police have not released the teen’s name because he is a minor. Comments who say they are family members have left messages on the online story at KTVZ.COM, saying he’s been moved to a Portland hospital to be treated for severe injuries.

Despite the tough times, they say they do want to raise money to replace Wollam’s van.

Various efforts to do that are getting under way, one started by Wollam’s famiily at: http://rogersvan.chipin.com/ro.