On April 20, Easter Sunday, Mackenze, 46, John, 16, and Mabel Rohl, 19, were struck by another vehicle at the intersection of Highway 10 and County Road QQ. John and the four passengers of the other vehicle suffered no injuries in the crash, but Mackenze suffered a broken nose and Mabel was airlifted to Regions Hospital after being ejected from the car.

“Mabel is still in the Neurology ICU but continues to make improvements. She has a long road ahead of her but she continues to make baby steps in the right direction. They call her ‘the miracle girl’ here. She battled through a lifesaving brain surgery and continues to defy the odds in her recovery. She has overcome so much and improving quickly and working hard to get better and get home. She is strong, determined, stubborn and sometimes her sassy personality comes out and keeps us all going,” Mackenze Rohl stated on April 26.

Through it all, the family is leaning on each other to get through it one day at a time.

“This is the kind of situation that you never think will happen to your family until it does. We have four kids: Liz, who [is] a junior at UW-Stout, Mabel a sophomore at UWRF, Jeanne a senior at Prescott and John a sophomore at Prescott. We are all very busy in the spring as Liz plays softball for UW-Stout, Mabel just started an internship at Ag Partners in Ellsworth, Jeanne plays softball at Prescott and John is a member of the Prescott Trap team so our lives are chaotic but fun! Then it all came to an abrupt stop last Sunday. We were heading home from Easter church service at St. Joseph's chatting about the day's events as we were having Liz's Stout softball team and family over for an Easter meal and egg hunt on the farm when the crash occurred. My family has been in a bit of a blur this past week trying to deal with Mabel and her condition while just going through all the emotions and impacts of the aftermath. My main focus is on Mabel who is receiving excellent care Regions in the Neuro ICU.

“I can't say enough about the doctors, therapists and nurses helping her get the care she needs to heal and recover. They are truly amazing and I know she is getting the best care available. The rest of my family have leaned on the support of family, friends and the community to help us through these hard times. It is the most difficult thing to go through having a family member be critically injured but watching Mabel fight and battle these past few days has motivated us to carry on and do what Mabel would want us to do.

“I can't thank the Prescott Fire Department, EMT workers and sheriff department [enough] in helping us through the scariest moment of our lives. If it wasn't for the emergency workers, I can't care to imagine what would have happened,” Mackenze Rohl stated.

Mackenze said the prayers have been felt, and while they hesitated to receive support from the community originally, they are extremely appreciative of all they have received. Family friend Amy Hildebrandt, the owner of Ridgetop outside of Prescott, connected with the family to set up a donation opportunity for the Rohls. Donations can be brought to the Ridgetop, Venmo’d to AmyHilde with a message of “Rohl Fund” so Hildebrandt can ensure what the funds are for (Hildebrandt requested people type the 2291 confirmation code because there are fake accounts going around using the family photos), dropped off at St. Joseph Parish School in Prescott or given to Madison Hildebrandt.

“When Amy contacted me about her plans I was very hesitant. We are the ones who like to help others not the other way around. It really is easier to give than to receive! A few people said it's your turn to receive help so let others help you. Having so much help and community support has been amazing. We are completely amazed at the support, well wishes, gifts, prayers and donations people have given us. It really does help lessen the burden and we appreciate it more than anyone will ever know! People have been so gracious and we appreciate them all so much. I'm not sure how we will ever be able to repay them but we just want everyone to know how much it means to all of us. My workplace St. Joseph's Parish School has been wonderful in helping me be at Mabel's side and I appreciate my fellow staff members so much for all they do to help out. Our family has been so helpful in every aspect of this journey and we are beyond grateful. Thank you to all the staff at PHS in helping Jeanne and John get through everything too! This community has something special and it is amazing to see everyone step up to help those when they need it most. Keep the prayers coming because I am watching them work every single day in Mabel's recovery,” Mackenze Rohl stated.

A Caring Bridge site with frequent updates on Mabel’s health is available at https://www.caringbridge.org/site/89171118-206e-11f0-8341-874a2e2749d8.