By Maddie Peloff ’16

Last year, the Olney community faced a tragic accident involving three of Sherwood’s students. On Aug. 30, 2015, Labor Day weekend, Austin Hall, Max Dechter, and Shawn Gangloff left a party where they had been drinking. Hall lost control of his vehicle on Hines Road and crashed into a massive oak tree just yards from a townhouse complex. All three were taken to area hospitals and Gangloff, a popular junior, died the next day.

While Hall was released from the hospital within a few days, Dechter faced more traumatic injuries. He shattered his right elbow, had three fractures in his neck, and experienced swelling in his brain. After spending five weeks in shock trauma, Dechter moved to a rehab facility where, for six months, he slowly regained his health.

Those months Dechter spent in the hospital were some of the hardest of his life, as well as his parents’ lives. “We went from one minute thinking he wasn’t going to make it to then having him in the hospital for so long,” said his mother, Jackie Dechter. “He had to relearn how to do everything. He couldn’t walk, he couldn’t eat, he couldn’t breathe on his own.”

While the months of rehab were incredibly difficult, Dechter and his family were overwhelmed with the community’s incredible outreach. All of Olney rallied around supporting the Dechter family. Overall, “the community was unbelievably supportive and wonderful,” said Jackie Dechter. “We didn’t appreciate that until his accident. We didn’t realize how many good friends we had and not just that, people we didn’t even know reached out and helped us in a lot of different ways.”

Not only was the community incredible, but Dechter’s friends were a constant support in his recovery process. While most of his friends were extremely supportive, helping him through the process at every step, he also realized that some of his friends weren’t his true friends. “I learned who to stay away from,” Dechter said. “My friends who were just into drugs and stuff were not my real friends.”

Before the accident, Dechter was an active kid. He played on the school’s lacrosse team. He had many friends and a busy social life. Today, he cannot maneuver a lacrosse stick in his right hand and the way he spends his free time has changed dramatically.

If not for the accident, Dechter would have graduated last year. Now, he is in an entirely new grade, without his core group of friends that graduated, but he is enjoying every minute of it. “I’m doing great in my classes and it’s just awesome to finally be able to get out of the house and do something,” said Dechter.

Dechter currently attends school on a half-day schedule and has so far been extremely grateful to his teachers and administration. Both he and his mother emphasized that the staff was incredible when Dechter returned to school, particularly his teachers. Dechter explained that teachers, like science teacher Britani Greco and English teacher Melissa Flowers, really helped him catch back up after missing a full year of school.

As a whole, the accident completely changed Dechter’s outlook on life. Before, he got into a lot of trouble, even calling himself “a really bad kid.” Now, however, he’s changed his life around. “I’m not into the same stuff I was,” said Dechter. “I’m going to college next year. I have a lot of goals.” In fact, Dechter has already received his first college acceptance letter from a school in Fort Lewis, Colorado.

Because of the accident, Dechter gained a new perspective on life as well as a new appreciation for his parents. After his mom came to visit him every day in Baltimore during his rehab, Dechter explained that he grew a new respect for her. His mother also explained that she and Dechter’s father gained a new appreciation for him. “He had a really long struggle and he’s still in it. He’s a good kid. I’ve got a new friendship, for sure,” she said.

While Dechter’s accident caused him so much pain and trouble, his bright spirit and positive attitude help keep him looking forward. He’s grown closer with his family and friends, gained goals and plans for the future, and seen a truly incredible community response. However, if he could warn students of anything, it would be to never get in the car with a drunk driver. It’s something students should already know, but Dechter stressed that if someone has been drinking or smoking, keep out of their car to remain safe.