Durango High School student suffers traumatic brain injury in ranch accident – ​​The Durango Herald

Ray Heron was flown to Salt Lake City to undergo a four-hour operation that saved his life

Ray Heron poses for a photo during a family hike at Turtle Lake. (Courtesy of Frieda Nixdorf)

A 17-year-old Durango High School student is recovering after being kicked in the head by a horse while working on a ranch north of Durango last week.

Ray Heron suffered a 2.5-inch skull fracture and a brain contusion after being kicked in the left temple. A piece of bone came within an inch of his middle cerebral artery, the largest in the brain, said Frieda Nixdorf, Ray’s aunt.

He underwent a four-hour, life-saving operation at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, where he remained in stable condition until Tuesday.

The accident occurred on the morning of May 29 at Bears Ranch, formerly known as Rapp Corral, near Haviland Lake. Ray works on the ranch as a ranch hand, taking care of cattle and horses.

Ray’s parents, Cory and Nina Heron, may have to stay in Salt Lake City for months while their son recovers. Ronald McDonald House Charities, a nonprofit that provides housing for parents near hospitalized children, has agreed to take in the Herons for a month.

Still, unemployment and mounting medical bills have left the Herons in a precarious financial situation, says Nixdorf, who has started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for the family.

As of Tuesday afternoon, a GoFundMe, which can be found under “Help Ray Heron overcome his life-threatening brain injury,” had raised $34,650 of its $150,000 goal. The family has also set up an account at Alpine Bank on Main Avenue for donations to the family.

Ray Heron, his twin sister Naia, mother Nina and father Cory pose for a family photo during a hike at Turtle Lake. (Courtesy of Cory Heron)

Since being discharged from surgery, Ray has shown signs that make his doctors and family optimistic about his recovery: He can move all of his limbs voluntarily, open his eyes, respond to verbal commands and is beginning to breathe on his own, Nixdorf said.

Before Ray can leave the hospital, he must undergo another operation to replace part of his skull that had to be removed during the first operation.

“He has a long road ahead of him, with several more days in intensive care, followed by weeks, possibly months in the trauma unit, and then months of daily therapy,” Nixdorf said.

Ray, who is entering his senior year of high school, is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys working with horses, Nixdorf said.

His parents wrote in an email that their son’s goals after high school include obtaining a welding certificate and working as a backcountry wrangler on a ranch.

“He’s such a great boy, kind-hearted and good-natured. He really cares about the animals,” Nixdorf said. “He loves nature, he loves the wilderness and he loves working with animals.”

Troop 538 Scoutmaster Wade Griffith awards Ray Heron his Life Rank, the second highest rank a Scout can achieve. (Courtesy of Erin Gervais, Troop 538 Committee Chair)

Ray has been in the Boy Scouts for eight years, rising to the rank of Life Scout and holding numerous leadership positions, including the highest responsibility a Boy Scout can hold, as “senior patrol leader” of Troop 538.

As a senior troop leader, Ray helped lead summer camps for younger Scouts and led them on week-long trips into the backcountry, including to the Wind River Range in Wyoming and the Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico.

Ray has also participated in extensive community service projects through the Boy Scouts, such as cleaning up U.S. Highway 550, conducting annual food drives at the Durango Food Bank, and placing flags on veterans’ graves each Memorial Day weekend.

News of Ray’s accident has deeply shocked Troop 538, said Jeff Mason, Scoutmaster Emeritus of Troop 538.

“It’s devastating, as it would be for any boy in our troop, but Ray holds a special place,” he said. “He is very benevolent, caring, generous and cares more about the young men in his troop. Putting them before himself is a typical trait of his.”

Wade Griffith, the current Scoutmaster of Troop 538, has two sons in the Boy Scouts who were under Ray’s leadership.

“I love having Ray around my boys because I believe he has a positive influence on my sons, not only because he is a good person with strong ethics and morals, but because he is just so much fun to be around,” Griffith said. “When I told them that Ray was seriously injured, my sons were very emotional. You don’t see a lot of emotion in middle school boys, but when they heard that Ray of all people was injured, they were really devastated.”

He added: “Ever since I met Ray, I thought he was a real cowboy. He dresses like a cowboy, talks like a cowboy, he wants an old pickup truck, wears boots, works with horses – he’s really a cowboy.”

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