NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. – A firefighter who was injured on the job was welcomed home by a big crowd Wednesday after nearly a year in the hospital.
“It meant the world to me. It meant the world to me,” said Jeremy Macklefresh.
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It was a day that not many there to greet him thought would come.
“On Sept. 8, we heard a frantic call on the radio. One of our lieutenants had found Jeremy on the ground unresponsive,” said Chief Shawn Vandemark.
The chief said Jeremy was working and riding in a vehicle similar to a golf cart to meet his lieutenant. When he didn’t show, the lieutenant found Jeremy nearby with a severe head injury.
Vandemark said they still don’t know what caused it and Jeremy doesn’t remember.
“There were no witnesses, no cameras anywhere around,” he said.
Jeremy’s coworkers rushed him to the hospital. His mom, Michelle, said doctors thought maybe he was hit by a car or attacked.
“He had a frontal lobe injury to his head first. Then they had to do a craniotomy, which is where they had to take half of his skull from his head and when they did that, it caused a stroke,” she said.
The family was told four times he wouldn’t make it, but he pushed. Eventually, he was relearning basic skills like walking.
“He’s never shown us that he’s defeated. He’s never shown us that he wants to give up,” said Michelle.
On Monday, Jeremy got out of the car to greet the crowd, standing on two feet.
“It’s just as exciting as the day he was born. We’ve been waiting 329 days for this day. It feels like our family is complete having him back where he’s supposed to be,” said Michelle.
The entire fire department was on his lawn to welcome him back, but his family says they were there the whole time.
“Over the last year we realized we were this close to losing Jeremy and it helped us understand that every day is not guaranteed and take advantage of it while you can,” said Vandemark.
Jeremy and his wife, Kimberly, will now settle into a new routine.
“I do not have all of the abilities I had prior to my accident, but they’re slowly coming back and I’m going to continue with outpatient rehab,” said Jeremy. “They’re going to help me recover completely and before long, I’ll be back with my brothers and sisters at the fire department.”