Community rallying in prayer at 2 services for girl injured in ATV crash
Published 3:29 pm Tuesday, August 25, 2020
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Community members are coming together in prayer for a 12-year-old girl who was seriously injured Friday evening in a four-wheeler crash north of Emmons.
The girl, Maddie Mann, sustained life-threatening injuries, according to the Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office.
A group of people gathered Saturday at New Denmark Park to pray for the girl and then a separate prayer service was held Monday night at Central Park.
John Holt, pastor at First Lutheran Church, estimated at least 150 people attended the Central Park gathering.
Holt said the girl’s family are members of the church and her mother had been on the church’s staff as a nursery supervisor. He said he wanted to give the youth, particularly, a place to focus and meet together.
During the service, Holt prayed, along with Eileen Woyen, pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, and John Mitchem, pastor of United Methodist Church. Holt said some of Maddie’s friends testified about how wonderful she is as a friend, and her sister also spoke, sharing her love for her sister and the Lord.
A GoFundMe page titled “Maddie needs us” that was set up for the family says the girl sustained a serious head injury and is in a coma. As of Tuesday afternoon, it had raised almost $4,400.
A press release stated the Sheriff’s Office was alerted to the crash at 7:14 p.m. Friday on 120th Street west of U.S. Highway 69, north of Emmons.
When a deputy arrived, Emmons first responders were attending to the girl, who had a pulse but was not responding to questions. A red Polaris four-wheeler was on its wheels in the north ditch.
An 8-year-old girl and a 13-year-old girl who were also on the four-wheeler at the time of the crash said the 12-year-old girl was driving and that the 8-year-old was in the middle and the 13-year-old was at the back of the seat.
They were reportedly eastbound when the driver turned left and went into the north ditch, and the four-wheeler rolled, the Sheriff’s Office stated. All three girls were thrown off and landed in the ditch. The two passengers couldn’t wake up the driver, so they walked to a neighbor’s house to get help.
The neighbor went to the crash site and found the 12-year-old girl laying and unresponsive in the ditch and started to provide first aid until the first responders arrived.
Mayo One helicopter landed on Highway 69 at 120th Street and transported the 12-year-old to Rochester. The passengers had slight pain and were taken by a parent to Mayo Clinic Health System in Albert Lea.
The crash remains under investigation by the Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office.
Assisting at the scene were Emmons first responders, Mayo Clinic Ambulance and the Minnesota State Patrol.