ST. GEORGE — Crue “Tuff” Cash was run over by a car but is hard-pressed to let that slow him down. His family is moving toward a new normal, with plans to celebrate Pioneer Day with the community at the Washington City parade.
Cash was hit by a car in April and spent two months recovering at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, St. George News previously reported. Doctors did not initially believe he would survive.
He returned home in June to a community that rallied around him, holding up colorful signs on the side of the road as a parade planned in his honor passed by.
Since then, Cash and his family have been adapting to their new normal, which has not always been easy, his mother, Kady Hill, told St. George News.
Typically the family would spend the summer at the sand dunes, going to the lake, camping or spending time outdoors. But this year, they’re “pretty boring” as the four-year-old is sensitive to the heat.
“We don’t really get out and do much, and if we do, it’s early in the morning, or it’s short-lived,” she said. “So we pretty much are prisoners in our own home as far as that goes.”
However, the family creates fun indoors, planning movie nights and playing games, Hill added.
“Our kids are our priority right now, so it’ just what makes them happy,” she said.
Between the time that Cash was hit and his return home, the family hadn’t been inside their house or driven down the street where it happened. Hill said it’s been “overwhelming,” being back, and hearing people playing outside can be difficult.
“The PTSD is very real,” she said.
Despite this, Hill and her husband have returned to work, building a new routine that keeps them “going seven days a week” between their jobs and Cash’s recovery needs.
“We’re getting it down to where it’s not as exhausting,” she said. “Dad is amazing, and he helps out everywhere that he can on top of — he works full time, you know, and so he does the nighttime stuff as I work the nighttime shift at the bank or I go to the studio or whatnot.”
Cash doesn’t remember the crash and asked to ride his bike — as he did the night of the incident — on his second day back home. His parents have explained what happened, but his memory hasn’t fully recovered, and he’s also a “typical” four-year-old boy, Hill said.
“They’re gonna hear what they want to hear,” she joked.
He’s still in therapy multiple times a week but has completed his time in occupational therapy because “he’s doing so well,” his mom said.
He’ll likely need speech therapy longer due to his facial nerve paralysis. While his speech is a little “off,” his family can understand what he’s saying. He “holds everything in body language,” she said.
“We always know if there’s something bothering him because he gets very stiff,” Hill said. “He gets overstimulated very quickly — it’s just all signs that we’ve learned to watch for, and he radiates everything in his face and his body movement.”
He has hearing loss due to the paralysis and an ear dislocation, and his eyes aren’t producing tears, but he has started to recover with the return of “his cute little half-smile,” Hill said. And his feet are “healing amazing,” despite an incident where “the bone popped through the skin.”
“It’s healing wonderfully on its own,” she said. “He’s walking so much better on his feet. He’s running, jumping, playing — doing all the things that a little boy should be doing.”
One of his biggest obstacles was “just keeping his feet on the ground,” Hill said. He removed his feeding tube about a week and a half after arriving in Southern Utah while swimming with his brothers.
“He just pulled his tube out and said, ‘I’m done,”‘ Hill recalls. “We gave him a trial, and there was just a couple of times we had to remind him (to eat or drink) and … we never had to go back.”
When asked what Cash’s greatest accomplishment has been thus far, Hill said, “Everything is huge. His biggest things are — he’s still fighting to be here.” While he’s made a lot of progress, the boy still has a lot of healing to do, as his lungs and kidneys are still damaged, and his immune system is compromised.
“A common cold could completely wipe him out and be a catastrophe for us,” she explained.
Still, Hill said she doesn’t want to discourage people from greeting him because he loves it, as shown in his “big, old half-smile.”
“We love seeing his supporters out in public,” she said. “We love it, and Crue loves it, and he thinks it’s the coolest thing. So … he shows everybody has scars — he thinks it’s awesome.
“We just want them to be mindful that if they’re sick or have experienced anything like that — yeah, talk to him. Don’t be afraid to talk to him; he will talk back. Just don’t touch him.”
For those who continue to follow Cash’s journey, Hill said they will be out on Pioneer Day and will participate in the Washington City parade. To learn more or request to walk with Cash while he carries the flag, Southern Utahns can text “crue” to 435-200-1917, according to the Pray for Crue Facebook page.
Some children will ride on the 1975 American LaFrance Firetruck that was present during Cash’s homecoming planned by Follow the Flag Southern Utah in June. However, the truck has limited space, so any wagon or stroller is welcome to join.
Participants will meet no later than 7 a.m. at 300 East, north of Telegraph Street in Washington City.
The Southern Utah community has continued to support Cash and his family, planning fundraisers and donating thousands of dollars via Venmo and GoFundMe. These donations continue to help the family as Hill said his medical costs are high, and insurance has covered only a small portion.
Details regarding Southern Utah’s holiday celebrations can be found on St. George News here.
Photo Gallery
Crue “Tuff” Cash sits on an all-terrain vehicle, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash celebrates with his family, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash celebrates with his family, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash wears sunglasses, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash sits with family, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash chills in the summer heat, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash plays, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash sits with the Little Mermaid, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News Crue “Tuff” Cash celebrates with family, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Kady Hill, St. George News
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