Tragedy strikes Glanzer family

January 30, 2009 • written by Mary DeJong, staff writer  
Filed under Feature

        Everything was silent and black as sophomore Susan Glanzer was trying to feel for her sister’s arm.  All she felt was the warmth of her sticky blood.  At this time, Glanzer was oblivious to her surroundings.

        “I must have been knocked out because I don’t remember the two other cars hitting us from behind,” Glanzer said.

        Susan’s mom, Kathy Glanzer, was killed in a traffic accident Dec. 26 in Richland County, N.D., coming home during Christmas vacation.  Susan’s dad, Hardy Glanzer, was driving, and Kathy was in the passenger seat while Susan and Samantha, Susan’s 14 year-old sister, sat in the back.

        “I was just about asleep when I heard my dad scream and felt him slam on the breaks,” Glanzer said.  “There was a huge jolt.”

        A semi-truck on the opposite side of the highway was hit by the wind and lost control, crossed the median and forced their car to hit the semi head-on.  Glanzer’s glasses had fallen off from the jolt of the crash, making it hard for her to find her family members.

        “I heard my sister, and I felt around until I found her arm,” Glanzer said.  “It was warm and sticky, which must have been the blood.  I couldn’t get the door open so I shoved her through the broken window to get her out of the car.  That’s when the pain hit me.”

        Glanzer broke her collar bone, making it difficult for her to breathe.  Glanzer could hear her dad talking and yelling for people, but she had heard nothing from her mom but silence.

        “My dad [told me] to try to take my mom’s pulse,” Glanzer said.  “I couldn’t see her, but when I felt her neck, it was wet and sticky and I couldn’t feel a pulse at all.”

        Within a half hour’s time, the highway patrol and three ambulances had come to assist.

        “The female that hit us from behind called for help,” Glanzer said.  “They put me on a stretcher because I had passed out.  They thought I might have head trauma.”

        On the drive to the emergency room, a neck brace was put on Glanzer for fear that she had a neck injury.  Glanzer’s aunt and uncle, who live nearby, met them at the hospital.

        “When we were in the hospital, my uncle came into my room,” Glanzer said.  “I asked him about my mom and he nodded yes.”

        Glanzer’s friends are doing everything they can to support her.

        “I listen to her, and we talk about what a great person her mom was,” sophomore Sarah Arnold said.  “She was always willing to help someone else.  She was Susan’s support system and they were always really close.”

        Arnold’s dad was diagnosed with brain cancer five years ago, making her realize she cannot take anything for granted.  He still has seizures, but the cancer is gone.

        “It’s kind of scary to think that someone could go so quickly,” Arnold said.  “I’m more grateful and appreciative of the people around me.”

        The rest of Glanzer’s family is having a hard time; however, Glanzer is mostly worried about Samantha.  Occasionally, she asks when her mom will be coming home.

        “She doesn’t really understand the accident,” Glanzer said.  “Sometimes she knows mom is gone and sometimes she doesn’t.”

        Glanzer knows there is no option but to make the best of the situation when dealing with the loss of a parent.

        “We’re getting by because we have to,” Glanzer said.  “We still have Dad and each other.  The three of us should have died too, but God kept us here for a reason.  He just hasn’t let us know why yet.”