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A Mother's Love Sparks A Miracle, Daughter Wakes Up After 5 Years In Coma

February 19, 2024

Today's good news story comes from Niles, Michigan.

In 2017, Jennifer Flewellen's life took a drastic turn while driving to work. After dropping her kids off at school, she felt lightheaded and veered off the road, crashing into a pole. She ended up in a serious condition and was in a coma for five years.

Peggy and Jenn | Credit: Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation

Throughout this challenging time, Jennifer's mother, Peggy Means, never lost hope for her daughter's recovery. Doctor's repeatedly told Peggy that Jennifer's chances of waking up were slim and that even if she did awaken she would not be able to function.

"They encouraged me, by like day two or three to take her off [life support]," Means recalled. "I said, 'No, not as of today, we're not going to do that.' And then each day, they kind of encouraged me more, and I'd say, 'No, it's in God's hands.'"

But Peggy's hope never wavered. Despite the odds, Peggy cared for Jennifer daily, maintaining a positive attitude and treating her as if she could hear.

"I'd tell her what the kids are doing, what we've been doing, and I tried to encourage her," Peggy told GMA.

"For years I would hold her hands and say 'Just squeeze my hand, Jenn. Squeeze my hand."

But she never did.

Finally, on August 25, 2022, during a walk, Jennifer laughed at a joke Peggy made. After nearly five years, Jenn woke up.

In the following weeks, with speech therapy and Peggy's support, Jennifer progressed from making small sounds to saying vowels and even spelling words. In less than a year, she returned home full-time.

Last fall, Jennifer attended her son Julian's high school football games, fulfilling a dream for both of them.

"About a year ago, I had it in my mind that she was going to come to my game, she was going to come to my senior year, senior night and things like that," Julian told WBND-LD. "I've talked about it for a while, and I dreamed of it and prayed for it, and it happened."

Despite the progress, Peggy remains focused on Jennifer's continued recovery and sets goals for her, emphasizing the need to stay positive and keep working towards improvement.

"We have a lot of work to do still, so we stay busy," Means said. "I want her to walk. I want everything, as much as possible, and we don't know what's possible, so we just have to keep doing it."

Watch the good news video below.