ST. GEORGE — Crue “Tuff” Cash arrived home last Thursday after a nearly two-month-long hospital stay. The 4-year-old was welcomed back by police officers, firefighters and smiling Southern Utahns holding vibrant signs.

Cash was hit by a car in early April and transported to three hospitals within the first few days. In Las Vegas, medical staff did not expect the boy to survive, Cash’s grandmother Shelley Nakaoka told St. George News in April.

“Pretty much the first words out of their mouth was, ‘He’s not gonna make it,’” she recalled. “‘His chest and lung area, (and his) heart are just crushed.’”

He was transported to Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City with an estimated 10% chance of surviving the trip, Nakaoka said.

In the weeks since, the boy has been “beating the odds against him,” his mother Kady Hill added.

“It was definitely horrifying,” she said. “But we’ll make the best of it. We’re just thankful that he’s still here … It’s insane. It really is. And, like, the doctors are completely shocked. We’re all shocked. We were thinking we were going to be at least six months.”

While he was unconscious, the family didn’t know what to expect. Since waking, Cash has been in physical, occupational, speech and feeding therapies, participating in sessions throughout most of the week, Hill said, adding that “he does great on all of them.”

“He’s pretty happy-go-lucky,” she said. “He does get overwhelmed when there’s a lot of noise or if it’s something that he doesn’t want to do. But other than that, he just kind of goes with the flow and does what he needs to do.”

He has had to relearn some things, but Hill said he remembers “about 90% of everything,” not including the incident.

“He’s asked questions and we talked to him about it,” she added. “And … his brain and everything is good. Everything is just a slow process. It’s just like having a baby again, just teaching them all of the steps. But he catches on very quickly every day and continues to grow. … He is definitely rambunctious. He doesn’t give up and he fights to get better.”

Cash arrived home last Thursday to a celebration organized by Follow the Flag Southern Utah, which included a 1975 American LaFrance Firetruck donated by Tony Chambers and Dixie Direct that the boy “absolutely loved riding in,” Jessica Griffiths, the nonprofit’s special event director, told St. George News.

“We just knew that this would be the crowning jewel for Crue’s homecoming, as Crue loves firetrucks,” she said.

He was also greeted by people holding handmade signs on the road’s edge, the Hurricane City Police Department and Hurricane Valley Fire and Rescue.

Follow the Flag organized the homecoming after reading about the incident in April, Griffiths said, adding that “as parents, it broke our hearts.” The group followed Cash’s recovery on the Pray for Crue Facebook group.

“A huge focus of our nonprofit, Follow The Flag, includes healing missions within our local communities and we wanted to help make Crue’s homecoming a very special and joyous occasion,” she said.

Organizing the event was complex as Cash was discharged from the hospital earlier than expected, and the family “made good time” traveling home, arriving an hour earlier than originally planned, Griffiths said.

“As a result, the welcome home party was smaller than we hoped for, but we still had a great turnout nonetheless,” she said.

The family is doing well, Hill said, adding that they are excited to be home.

“Trying to juggle our new crazy life has been a bit overwhelming,” she added. “Crue had doctor appointments and therapy five days a week. Hopefully, that will slow down as he continues to heal. The love and support has been amazing. We are just happy to be home. It’s been a long two months.”

Southern Utahns have continued to support the family through thoughts, kind words and financial donations via fundraising, Venmo and GoFundMe. Cash’s medical needs have proven costly, and Hill said she expects the total to be in the millions.

“We’re gonna get through it and that’s gonna be fine,” she said. “We’re just thankful that we still have Crue as healthy as Crue is, and he’s a feisty little guy still.”

While Follow the Flag can’t be involved in every opportunity to support others, Griffiths said they strive to “inspire others to lock arms with others” whenever possible and encourages Southern Utahns who want to join “healing missions” to visit their Facebook page and website.

“There are countless members of our communities who want to serve and just don’t know how,” she said. “The thought is always, ‘someone else will organize it’ and as such, there are many missed opportunities to honor, serve and inspire (our motto).

“We strive to do what we can to help gather volunteers and provide organizational support to lessen the chances of missed opportunities.”

Follow the Flag and Hill (via the Pray for Crue Facebook group) contributed clips for the video at the top of this article.

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