After a terrible accident, ‘I’m not going to give up.’

Story by Jacob Hancock

Photos courtesy of Carson Ellerby

RALEIGH, N.C. — Carson Ellerby wanted to go for a run that summer night on July 20, 2016. He can’t exactly remember why. Maybe he had a long day at work and just needed to clear his mind. Running had always been a gift to him.

After work, he parked his car at a motel near Brier Creek in Raleigh, North Carolina. The route was about 12 miles.

As he approached the end, he came upon the intersection of T.W. Alexander Drive and Brier Creek Lane. Ellerby made his way across the six lanes of traffic.

The next thing he remembers is waking up in the WakeMed Brier Creek Healthplex.

He never saw it coming – the eastbound vehicle speeding across T.W. Alexander Drive. According to the police report, it struck him on his right side at 52 miles per hour and knocked him 87 feet down the road.

Ellerby was comatose.  After two weeks filled with prayers from family and friends, he awoke.

Ellerby suffered multiple fractures in each leg, as well as a traumatic brain injury.

He couldn’t remember much. All he knew was his gift had been taken away.

***

Ellerby was always athletic. He grew up playing soccer, and in sixth grade he ran in the Raleigh RunDown Downhill Mile. That’s when he found his gift.

“For the first time I felt like I was pushing myself,” Ellerby said. “I really felt a sense of accomplishment.”

Ellerby ran track and field in middle school, where he developed as a distance runner. He was good enough in eighth grade to catch the attention of Mark McLamb, head coach of both the cross country and track and field teams at Leesville Road High School.

“He was not one of our best runners as a freshman, but we also had one of the best teams in the state that year,” McLamb said. “He had a great work ethic and grew by leaps and bounds as time went on.”

He quickly improved under McLamb’s guidance and was promoted to the varsity team as a sophomore. That year, he finished ninth at the NCHSAA Track and Field State Championships in the 800 meters.

Ellerby emerged as one of the school’s all-time standout runners. He set school records in the indoor 1600 meters, the indoor 1000 meters and the outdoor 800 meters.

He also ran as a member of the Carolina Elite Track and Field Club in Raleigh. Ellerby said one of his favorite aspects of running was the intense competition he got to face.

“I got to go up against some incredible athletes at Carolina Elite,” Ellerby said. “They really pushed me to be a better runner and showed me how hard I needed to work.”

His performance earned him an invite to New Balance Nationals Indoor Competition in New York, where he was one of 30 runners from across the country who competed in the 800 meters in the Emerging Elite division and finished 16th.

After his high school career was over, Ellerby received a scholarship to run cross country and track at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He continued to apply himself on the track, as well as in the classroom, earning a 3.875 GPA. He enjoyed his time at UNC-C, but he realized that his grades gave him the opportunity to transfer to his dream school, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“It was just too much for me to pass up,” Ellerby said.

There are a million things Ellerby loves about Chapel Hill. He was involved in Hope Gardens, a student-run nonprofit organization that teaches participants about good gardening practices and seeks to educate the community on healthy, sustainable eating habits and increase access to fresh produce. He also worked with Heavenly Groceries, a food bank that services underprivileged communities in the Chapel Hill area.

“Serving my community has always been important to me,” Ellerby said.

Though Ellerby didn’t run for the varsity teams at UNC, he did join the club cross country team. Between workouts with the club and running on his own time, Ellerby accumulated about 50 miles each week.

Ellerby found himself with a heavy workload while studying economics. At times when it felt like it was all becoming too much, he’d turn to his old habits and go for a run.

“It felt like meditation,” Ellerby said. “It’s such a beautiful area, there’s so much nature surrounding everything.”

***

Ellerby remained at WakeMed for more than four months after his accident. He returned home on Dec. 6, 2016. His inactivity caused his muscles to atrophy, and he lost about 50 pounds. It’s taken a lot of work for him to get back to a healthier weight.

After returning home, he started doing therapy at Duke University and UNC medical centers, during which many of his close friends visited.

“That was a really important part of my recovery,” Ellerby said. “It really meant a lot to me to see them.”

At the beginning of 2017, Ellerby rehabbed at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, which offered quality care and affordable housing for his family. His mother travelled with him.

“She’s been the most important person throughout the process of my recovery,” Ellerby said.

While at the Shepherd Center, Ellerby went through physical, occupational and speech therapies. He even did music therapy, where he was able to listen to his favorite songs, play different instruments and discuss different aspects of music, ranging from social to political.

Ellerby finally got rid of his wheelchair in March 2017 and started using a walker. He returned to Raleigh a couple of months later and continued rehab at Duke and UNC.

Now, he’s starting to get around a little bit easier. Around the beginning of April, he walked around Lake Lynn near his home. It’s about a 2.7-mile trail, far shorter than the distances he used to run regularly. He had to stop a few times and regather his strength. But he’s still proud of the progress he’s made.

“I’ve come so far, even though there were times where it might have felt like it was never going to happen,” Ellerby said. “I’m not going to give up.”

***

The driver who struck Ellerby was not charged, and Ellerby carries no ill will toward him.  He is moving on with his life. He misses running, he misses Chapel Hill, and he misses his friends.

“Right now it’s difficult because I would be graduating, and a lot of the friends I made are leaving,” Ellerby said

But he plans to return to UNC in the fall, and plans to reconnect with some of his old friends.

“That’s been one of the main things that’s kept me going,” Ellerby said, “being back in Chapel Hill and being a part of Carolina again.”

Ellerby had his gift taken from him on that summer night. But one day he hopes to run again. And until then, he has plenty of other gifts that he’s thankful for.