Levi Weber is drawing on a life-changing past experience to guide his future. In 2017, a motorcycle crash nearly took his life. The glass blower who loves motorcycles was riding his bike to his father’s retirement dinner. Four blocks from home, the Sioux City, Iowa, man was hit by a vehicle while crossing a busy intersection.
The crash caused extensive injuries to Levi’s sternum, heart and pancreas, broke 23 bones and resulted in a serious brain injury. Complications with low blood pressure also led to a series of minor strokes. Emergency personnel transferred Levi to Mercy Medical Center. Heavily sedated, family and friends stayed by Levi’s bedside for 30 days. Levi says that overnight he went from a fully functional 23-year-old to one heavily leaning on others for support. “I couldn’t even pick up a pencil at the time. I had to have everybody do everything for me,” Levi said.
Once stable, Levi was transferred to Madonna’s Specialty Hospital on the Lincoln Campus, but a series of medical setbacks—including pneumonia and sepsis—hindered his recovery. Weak and in constant pain, Levi moved to Madonna’s Omaha Campus for acute rehab. Early on, therapy consisted of getting up, dressed and into his wheelchair as well as navigating depression and other neuropsychological symptoms. “Each day was rough and there weren’t day-to-day improvements,” said Cindy Weber, Levi’s mother. “Luckily, Madonna professionals saw the long-term picture and were incredibly patient.”
Patient and innovative, therapists tapped into Levi’s passions—taking him on an outing to a glass blowing studio and incorporating guitar into therapy sessions. Once home, Levi continued to practice which helped improve his memory and concentration skills, not to mention his hand strength and coordination. As Levi’s outlook and attitude improved, so did his motivation to fulfill a promise he made to his care team.
Nine months after his accident, on March 3, 2018, Levi returned to the Omaha Campus to play the guitar for his care team as a way to say thanks. “I still find myself thinking how lucky I am. I’m able to walk and am back to doing activities I truly enjoy,” Levi said. Despite the comforts of home, Levi continued to be plagued by long-term medical issues and underwent additional surgeries, therapy and alternative methods in order to fully heal. During this time, he channeled his energy into discovering activities that gave his life meaning including returning to his passion of playing the French horn, cultivating his cooking skills and spending time with family.
Drawing on the power of music, prayer and in talking to others, Levi says the crash and long road to recovery caused him re-evaluate his career choice. He’s now back in school to become a physical therapy assistant. “I came to the realization after this experience that I was no longer interested in hustling for new clients to grow my small business. Now my goal is to help people,” Levi said.
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