Transformations: High school volleyball player Kennedy Hehr chooses to be victor, not victim

The road to the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida – site of this weekend's 41st AAU Junior National Volleyball Championships — has undoubtedly been long and challenging for hundreds of the country's most talented and aspiring players.

None possibly could have taken a more unlikely or harrowing six-month path than incoming Big Foot (Walworth, Wis.) sophomore Kennedy Hehr, a dynamic 5-foot-6 outside hitter for her high school team and libero for Club Fusion out of Marengo, Illinois.

"I'm just glad I'm here," she said.

Hehr didn't mean Florida. She meant the planet.

The vivacious and determined 15-year-old survived deep internal injuries sustained in a near-fatal car crash on Jan. 26 and the physical and emotional scars that followed. She spent 11 days in the hospital, missed 30 days of school and lost 22 pounds, but persevered thanks largely to family, faith, friends and an unrelenting goal to get back on the court.

Remarkably, 67 days after emergency surgery to repair a punctured intestine and completely severed stomach, Hehr started at libero for her new Club Fusion team at the JVA World Challenge in Houston.

It was a fitting tournament name considering what Hehr had endured and overcome.

"There were more than a few times I wondered if I would get back," Hehr said. "And I certainly didn't think I was going to start right away. I had only been practicing with the team a couple weeks. In the beginning my stamina wasn't where it needed to be. But I got back up to speed faster than I thought."

Being quick, determined and fearless are all common traits of a libero. So is being selfless. There's little glory or notoriety attached to the position, the first line of defense that among other things requires one to often dive on one's stomach.

Constantly, in fact.

Considering it took 22 staples to put Hehr's tummy back together, overcoming mental barriers were key. Then again, liberos, who fittingly wear a different colored jersey from teammates, are of a different tenacious mindset anyway.

"You have to be quick and read the court," Hehr said. "You have to know what's coming at you. If you don't anticipate where the ball is going you'll probably get hit in the face."

What occurred to Hehr on that cold, wet fateful night six months ago, 11 miles from home, couldn't have possibly been anticipated.

Dazed and confused

She was returning home from watching the Fusion play — Hehr had just joined the program — with teammate and friend Mackenzie Long and her parents Jim and Teri Long.


Hehr and Mackenzie, 18, were asleep in the back seat, when a car from the opposite direction crossed the center line and struck the Longs' vehicle on the rear driver's side. The driver of the car was impaired by prescription drugs, it was later discovered.

Remarkably, Hehr, on the passenger side, was the only one hurt. Her injuries were all internal, making matters more complicated and dangerous. There were no outward wounds or blood, only deep, severe pain to the dazed and confused teen.

"I didn't know what was happening," she said. "I was just in such severe pain. Honestly, I felt like I wasn't going to make it."

Luckily, Jim Long is a paramedic and knew something was seriously wrong with Hehr, who was vomiting, writhing in pain and drifting in and out of consciousness. The blunt force trauma had severed her stomach in half.

Jim Long sought to get Hehr to a level one trauma hospital but it wasn't safe for a helicopter transport. The closest hospital was an hour away Centegra Medical Center in McHenry, Illinois, where the rare, complicated but successful surgery was performed.

Judy Hehr, Kennedy's mother, said the decisive actions of the Longs helped save her daughter's life. She received a call from Jim — "at 5:55 p.m." — once at the hospital. The accident occurred at 4:41.

She, husband Bob, older brother Chandler, 17, and younger sister Kampbell, 12, soon arrived at the medical center. Oldest brother Carter, 19, a freshman at the University of Arizona, left college immediately and arrived within 24 hours. He didn't leave for a week until Kennedy was out of danger.

"So many things had to go right for this to turn out like it did," Judy said. "There are so many people and things to be grateful for."

Ripple effect

Though Kennedy was new to their program, Fusion coach Bill Milborn and club director Eric Schultz were incredibly attentive during the recovery phase, Judy said. Each member of her new club team sent flowers.

"With so much support from my family and friends and the club, I knew I would push through," Kennedy said. "I just kept pushing and pushing."

But making a goal to play in Texas was key, she said. It seemed awfully ambitious, especially since doctors at first didn't know if she'd ever be able to play again.

"Goals are very important," said Kennedy, who ranked third on her 38-6-1 Big Foot team as a freshman with 182 kills. "They make you work very hard to achieve them."

Judy said she always knew her oldest daughter was spirited. But watching Kennedy fight through the last six months has given everyone new perspective. About all of it.

"The ripple effect one person's decision makes can impact so many," Judy said. "Kennedy's life is changed forever. She's chosen to be the victor, not the victim, and I'm so proud of her for that. … I've seen a side of my daughter I never saw before. She's fought through with such courage and conviction."

But it's still not easy. Not by any stretch or bite. She's reminded of the accident every time she eats.

"Every time I swallow food there is a sharp pain," she said. "I don't know when and if it's going away. I'll have to keep playing it by ear.

"There are days it's very frustrating. But it beats the alternative. I'm just happy I'm here. I'm just so happy to be alive."

Update

More challenging news for Kennedy. She suffered a torn right lateral meniscus during training for Junior Nationals. Surgery on Wednesday was a success but she'll be out 16 weeks, and likely miss much of the high school season.

It was another tough physical and emotional blow, Kennedy said. But she's not deterred.

"This was tough because I had trained so hard to get to this point," Kennedy said. "But in some ways, I'm more determined than ever."

She wrote this on her Facebook page: "This has been one, rough, and confusing year for me. What I love most, playing volleyball, has been taken from me twice within six months. Although this is another setback, I am looking at it as another challenge for me to overcome with my drive and determination to return to the court. My goal is to come back better than ever and continue to chase my dream of playing volleyball at the next level."