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Family, community stays 'Owen Strong' to help injured teen

Joe Shearer 7 hrs ago

The Council Bluffs Boys & Girls Club was “Owen Strong” Saturday morning as friends and family members gathered to raise money for a new house for an Abraham Lincoln High School student who may be paralyzed following a snowboarding accident this winter.

Owen Hansen, a 17-year-old junior at Abraham Lincoln High School, was snowboarding on a hill off of Franklin Avenue near Bennett Avenue on Feb. 11. Family members say he was a self-taught tumbler and a dedicated cheerleader. Hansen was used to performing technical flips and stunts while performing, and he brought that same dedication to his other passion — snowboarding.

However, on that fateful day, Hansen was riding alone and attempted a flip that was ill-timed and it potentially changed his life forever. ... Hansen made a crash landing on his head, which broke his neck and tore his spinal cord. Family members said that first responders estimated that he had been laying in the snow for about 30 minutes until a good Samaritan named Missy Murphy pulled over to call for help after seeing the injured teen while driving home with her daughter.

Hansen was rushed to the hospital for surgery on his neck and spine, and he has since been in recovery at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln, Nebraska.

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Hansen’s family has a GoFundMe page set up, and have also created a donation account at United Credit Union, 1900 W. Broadway, titled “Owen Strong.”

Those interested in donating can drop money off at the bank in-person or mail in a check.

Go to bit.ly/3dufGZg for more information.