Oregon mother credits helmet for saving son’s life
By Haley Rush
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KEIZER, Oregon (KPTV) — We’ve all heard the saying, always wear your helmet. A Keizer mom said that’s the reason her son is still alive and with her this Thanksgiving.
“It was terrifying,” said Jane Titchenal.
Titchenal said when her son didn’t answer his phone early last week, she knew something wasn’t right.
“I drove past the apartment,” she said. “I noticed his bike wasn’t there and so I looked at his location on his phone and it was near Lockhaven, so I decided to turn over there.”
She then drove to the intersection of Lockhaven and Klicitat Drive Northeast in Keizer, where she saw flashing lights.
“I parked and I ran down to the scene and I asked one of the police officers if he had seen a boy on a bike and he said, we’ve been trying to get a hold of you.”
Titchenal said a driver hit her 11-year-old son, Kenny, while he was riding his bike home.
Keizer Police said the driver stayed on the scene and the crash is still under investigation.
Kenny though, suffered a number of serious injuries.
“He had a lot of different lacerations to his face,” said his mom. “He broke his shoulder, he had a lot of internal bleeding, he had a punctured liver, a punctured lung.”
“But Kenny was really brave,” she continued.
Both Titchenal and Keizer PD credit a helmet for saving Kenny’s life.
“We have a family friend who was looking out for Kenny and noticed he needed to be wearing his helmet and she made sure to let him know to get that, and then Kenny chose to wear a helmet and that’s the only reason that he’s here with us today,” said Titchenal.
Kenny is now home recovering. As for his mom, she’s encouraging others to remember bike safety.
“It’s important that they have lights on their bike,” she said. “It’s important that they wear bright clothes.”
“It’s really important that they wear their helmet,” she continued.
Titchenal said Keizer Police Association recently gifted Kenny a new bike.
Kenny also has a GoFundMe set up.
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