Near-Fatal 2006 College Trip Links Two Girls, Their Families

Imagine yourself as a mom getting a call from the hospital that your college-aged daughter has been in a deadly accident that killed nine other students and seriously injured four. They tell you that your daughter had been thrown fifty feet and is now in a coma in their hospital. You're devastated. You have to call your husband and tell them the news and meet him at the hospital. Once there, the doctors warn you to prepare yourself for what you are about to see. You walk in and see your precious child hooked up to machines and wires are everywhere. The prognosis is grim. She may be a vegetable from now on if she doesn't die. You stick together as a family and stay by her bed side day and night. You don't see any sign of life for so long. When you do see life, you are blown away.

Now, imagine that you get a call from a stranger saying there had been a terrible accident that involved your daughter, but they don't know if she was one of the survivors, or if she died. You have to call your husband to tell him and he is over 1,000 miles away and can't get home any time soon. You call your other daughter and tell her to come home. Soon, you get a call from the coroner who says that unfortunately, your daughter was one of the victims that passed away. Devastated, you call your husband back and he comes home as soon as possible. You go through the grief. You have to bury your beautiful daughter. You proceed through the funeral and show images of her to the guests. One month later, you get another call from the coroner and are shocked by what he says.

This is a story about two families intertwined by fate. Two different girls, Laura and Whitney, who have never been closer to one another, yet do not ever meet. This is a story about mistaken identity.

The first family finds out that the girl they have been praying for and devoted their time to was not really their daughter, but another's. The daughter that the second family buried was not their own. A month went by before the second family found out their daughter was in fact alive. You see, the hospital never officially identified the young woman. They took the ID from the wallet in the purse next to her body. The coroner never officially made an identification because he took the ID from the wallet next to that body. Both purses had been switched somehow in the crash.

The other daughter of the first family noticed several things that were different when the comatose girl began waking up. First, her teeth. When the lady yawned, her 'sister' noticed they were different. She shrugged it off. Then when 'Laura' opened her eyes, they were a different color. Still, it was shrugged off. But bit by bit, more things began coming out and more and more differences began showing up. The big tip was when the physical therapist asked 'Laura' to say her name and she replied "Whitney".When the family came to believe this, they called the coroner and questioned him. He decided to do a genetics testing and found out that 'Laura' was in fact Whitney. They called her family and told them.

Whitney's mother couldn't believe it. She wanted to, but was scared to trust this voice on the other end of the phone. Could it be? Could her daughter be alive? She called her other daughter and husband and told them the news. They went to the hospital later that day to confirm it.

Both families began a new journey, one bitter, the other sweet. Whitney continued to improve and made a full recovery. The healing process has begun for the family who lost their daughter. Both families have been brought together and have since become friends.

Source:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23849928/