Jennifer Duncan is learning how to walk again, after losing her leg in an accident in 2016.
On May 16, 2016, Duncan was taking her son, Xzavian, to daycare before work when she got into an accident on I-35 in Waco. As she was out of the car waiting on the side of the highway, another accident occurred just south of where she was and pushed a truck right in her direction.
Duncan was holding her 8-month-old son when she was knocked off the I-35 bridge over 4th Street.
"When I saw the truck coming towards us there wasn't enough time between that and falling to have any thought,” Duncan said. “There was no thought process."
Duncan and Xzavian fell 30-feet to the ground.
"I just grabbed on to him as tight as I could and I kept praying please if anything just let him live. Don't let me live, just let him live,” Duncan said.
Miraculously, they both survived. Her son only had a scratch. Duncan managed to create a human cocoon during the fall, shielding him from the impact. Duncan, however, was not so lucky.
She had several serious injuries. Her pelvis was shattered, she broke nine bones in her back, fractured her legs, fractured her ribs, had spleen injuries and had several internal injuries, too. Her leg was amputated above the knee.
In seven months, she had 14 surgeries. Duncan spent two months in the hospital and one month in rehab.
In the two years since the accident, Duncan has been working to get a prosthetic leg.
Duncan said she ran into trouble after finding out Texas Medicaid would not cover the cost for a prosthetic.
About a year ago, a non-profit, Steps of Faith Foundation, found Duncan’s GoFundMe page.
“We help amputees who are uninsured or underinsured who have no other way to pay for a prosthesis,” Steps of Faith Foundation Executive Director Billy Brimblecom said.
Brimblecom saw Duncan’s story and reached out to help. He found a prosthetist in Waco to help Duncan begin the process of getting a prosthetic leg.
“We’re just thankful to be involved,” Brimblecom said. “I have lost a limb and I’m a parent, just like her. So that’s why everything about this was like, it’s unbelievable. I’m just so thankful this worked out. That she survived and the baby is okay.”
"I'm really thankful for their donations and their help. It's made my life a lot better,” Duncan said.
Two years after the accident, Duncan is learning to walk again.
“Oh my gosh it’s amazing,” Duncan said. “When (my son) saw me walking for the first time he just lit up and had the biggest smile on his face and said, ‘Wow! Cool!’”
Duncan is able to take her now 2-year-old son to the park and play with him, instead of just watch.
"I can honestly say I'm happier because I get to walk around with my baby and do these things I didn't think I would be able to do again but I'm finally able to do them,” Duncan said.
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