"Another Haunting Story--1965 Good-Bye Karen!"

In the Spring of 1965, being a 10th grader and in my Home-room, I became very friendly with a beautiful girl who was a Cheerleader.  Since I was shy, I would have never-ever have gotten to know her so well in the special and engaging fashion had she not been sitting in front of me in Home-room. One beautiful Friday, I gave her a special flower/carnation arrangement for her hair that I brought from home that had been given to my Mother as friendly gift for such a beautiful friend. Karen was very gracious and accepted the flower/pin and assured me that she would wear it, as it was beautiful and from me!  The next day, Saturday, I, along with my usual two fishing buddies headed for Rising Sun, Indiana to go fishing at Grant Creek.  On the way, we were caught in a horrific accident scene where a Chev. Corvair had been cut in half by another large car head-on and it was graphic and horrific.  We watched as the Ambulance and medical workers loaded the accident victims into the emergency vehicles headed to the hospital.  A State Patrol Officer asked us to get out of our car to assist with clean-up and we did.  He told us that 2 girls were dead on the scene and another was critically injured with very severe head injuries.  You could clearly see what looked like Brain Matter on the dashboard area.  He said that once the car was cut in two, the front seat was hit head-on and the girls were smashed.  I then noticed a flower set that looked just like the one that I had given Karen on Friday and was perplexed and had an inherent bad feeling that was both haunting and scary. Later that day, we heard that the girls killed and one injured were from Hamilton and sadly and surely, Karen was the lone survivor.  My Mother called the hospital, as she then worked in the Emergency room in Hamilton, and she was given information that could not have been obtained via normal venues due to confidentiality.  Karen was super critical and the Trauma Surgeon who operated on Karen was quoted as saying he had never seen such severe Brain trauma and he had to remove her hair rollers from her brain tissue.  He said that she was near death and that she reminded him of his own daughter at about the same age.  She later died on Monday to my anguish and grief, learning this at school in Home-room.  I had the "BLOODY" flower arrangement that I retrieved from the accident to always REMEMBER Karen and I was heartbroken and traumatized for years to come.  I kept this flower pin for many-many years and often came to tears in my most private and sentimental moments! Often, I offered a Prayer for Karen with wet eyes and a hurting heart!  A very sad chapter in my life!  Capt. Rick Rotundo