Damschen's signing yet another step in comeback
Saturday, April 14, 2007 12:14 AM PDT
By Rick S. Alvord, columnist
Printable version
E-mail this articleEmily Damschen thought she was going out for dinner with her father.
Not that there's anything wrong with spending Friday night solo with Papa Damschen. But this? Oh, this was definitely something off-the-charts "cool."
In fact, "cool" was the word the Castle Rock High School senior kept using to describe the scene inside the Indy Way Diner in Longview.
Occupying the majority of the booths in the diner portion of the combination gas station, convenience store and eatery were family members, friends and volleyball coaches ---- including her future head coach at Lower Columbia College.
The surprise party featured Damschen, the Most Valuable Player of the Southwest Washington 1A Trico Division last fall, signing her volleyball letter of intent as rookie LCC mentor Marcy Gilchrist looked on.
Gilchrist then handed a Lady Devils T-shirt to Damschen, who later feasted on her favorite Indy Way Diner meal of French toast, bacon and Mountain Dew.
"That's my usual. The French toast is awesome here. A little butter, lots of powdered sugar," beamed Damschen, who admits she is fortunate to be in a position to sign a college volleyball letter of intent after what happened on a dark highway late last December.
It was 11:05 p.m. on Dec. 22, 2006, to be exact. Damschen, 17, was driving from Vader to her home in Castle Rock on West Side Highway (State Route 411) after exchanging Christmas gifts with friends.
Moments after taking the road, Damschen was struck head-on by a pickup driven by Tyler J. Richards, 22, of Vader. Richards was booked by the Washington State Patrol for suspicion of driving under the influence.
"He pleaded guilty," Damschen said. "I still haven't met him."
Damschen, who was driving her father's Chevrolet Tracker SUV instead of her small economy car, miraculously survived the accident with only serious bruises. Police at the scene later told her she likely would have died had she been driving her car.
In the nearly four months since the collision, Damschen has been tormented in varying degrees by nightmares and visions of the accident. For several weeks, simply getting inside of an automobile was an emotional experience.
This week at Castle Rock High, officials asked students to participate in what Damschen called "the every 15 minutes thing."
"Statistics say that somebody is killed by a drunk driver every 15 minutes. With the prom coming up, they want to make sure everybody thinks about staying safe," she said. "We had to watch a video of a girl getting in an accident. She was dead. And today (Friday), some students put on a skit, where their classmates die in a drunk-driving accident.
"And there are kids who walk around with black on their faces, representing people who've died," she said. "All of it hits a little too close to home for me. It hasn't been long enough."
Damschen has difficulty sleeping at times. The fast-approaching headlights on that cold December night are still fresh in her memory.
"It has gotten a little better, but I still think about it. The accident had a lot to do with why I'm staying close to home for college and volleyball," said Damschen, who turned down a scholarship offer from Indiana Tech. "When something like this happens, you realize how valuable your family is to you. I spent a lot of time in high school being into myself and my needs. I wanted to get out of Castle Rock and forget about it.
"But," she added, bouncing her toddler niece, Lexi, on her knee, "I guess I'm not ready to leave yet. I'm just so much happier around my family."
Damschen, however, is moving out of her parents' home and heading to "the big city of Longview," 10 miles away.
"That's the first step," she joked. "It will also help financially by staying closer to home for college and volleyball. In that respect, it's a good decision, too. Plus, I am very stoked about the upcoming season and playing for our new awesome coach."
Gilchrist, who works in LCC's Foundation Office, is no stranger to the local volleyball scene. She graduated from R.A. Long High in 1990, attended LCC for one quarter and helped the Lady Devils win the NWAACC title while earning tournament MVP honors. She later moved on to Central Washington University, where she played from 1992 to '94.
She also competed with the Cowlitz Volleyball Club, where she now serves as an assistant coach with the Asics Black 18s team.
Gilchrist's sister, Tammy Watkins, coached Damschen several years ago on the club's 14-year-old squad. So the recruiting process was somewhat of a tag-team sister affair.
"First of all, it's unbelievable that Emily is still with us after what happened in that accident. She even could have been injured permanently," Gilchrist said. "Emily is a battler. She plays hard, but she's always the one on the court who's smiling and having fun. We're looking forward to having her in our program."
Watkins, sitting in the booth directly behind Damschen, wiped away tears as the Rockets' star signed her letter of intent with the Lady Devils.
There were more tears in nearby booths, from those who helped Damschen through the most terrifying ordeal of her young life.
But the guest of honor could only smile.
"This is what it's all about," Damschen said. "This means so much to me."
Rick S. Alvord is sports editor of The Daily News. He can be reached at ralvord@tdn.com or 577-2527.
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