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Show 19 Hilltop November 10, 1999 . . y t 'Mailman' delivers smile to b urn victim flaming truck accident A cost Dustin Aldous - deaf since age 3 - most of his fingers and the ability to communicate through sign language, though a chance meeting with Karl Malone has helped restore his hope. Dustin," Kris said. "He showed a genuine interest and concern. Dustin has always been a Jazz fan and was honored Malone would take some time away from his family to visit with him." I?; ! HB liliilii ... near-life-siz- by Mary Galbraith Hilltop Times staff Last March, the gas line of Dustin Aldous' truck ignited after a tire blowout threw the truck into a curved guardrail, knocking him unconscious. The fire quickly engulfed the truck with the trapped inside. . "Two gentlemen stopped at the accident scene, wrapped their arms with coats and broke the passenger side window in order to open the door," said Kris Aldous, Dustin's mother, who works in the Contracting Directorate, "They pulled him out of the truck and used coats to put out the fire on Dustin's clothes and body. They truly risked their own lives." When the fire was extinguished, nothing remained ; except the frame. Dustin received third degree burns over 75 percent of his body. During the first two months, his family Kris, his father, Bill, and sisters, Heather and Jessica were told Dustin had less than a 40 chance of living.,This wasn't the first time percent l Dustin's-wilto survive would help him beat doctor's odds. "Dustin lost his hearing due to recurrent meningitis said each outing helps build Dustin's confidence and makes him more comfortable in public places. At the Delta Center, Dustin sat with Kay Malone and met Miss Utah and Karl's brother, Terry (who Kris said looks just like Karl but smaller or at least not as tall) . After the game, security escorted Dustin to the locker room where Malone introduced him to several of the players. As Malone iced his feet and ld ; . - . at age three," said Kris. "Doctors told us he wouldn't live through that ordeal either." After the accident, he spent 3 12 months at the University of Utah Burn Unit and continues to receive outpatient treatment from the center. To date he's had 15 surgeries. Over the next three years he will have additional surgeries to reconstruct the, worst burned areas. ; Dustin lost all of his fingers on his left hand and down to the last knuckle on his right from the burns and at the same time lost much of his ability to communicate through sign language. He'll be tested this month to see if there's enough blood flow to graft a large toe to the thumb area and small toe to the pinky finger area. "The toes attached to a thumb and finger knuckle will function, in time, the same as any thumb or finger," said Kris, "It will give him the ability to pick things up, hold things such as a drinking glass and also allow him better capability to care for his own personal grooming needs." In the meanwhile,: Dustin's family helps him commu' nicate.- '': '""; :,".: "Because Dustin was three when he lost his hearing, his vocabulary and speech were developed," his mother said. "He continues to speak however until you're around him for a while his speech is hard to underafter stand. He reads lips with 95 percent accuracy he learns how each new individual formulates their "v-words." In t addition to surgery on his hands, there are still some open wounds healing and Dustin will need reconstructive surgery on his ear, nose and left eye where some of his vision was decreased. He has additional problems with his lungs and the'damage from the burns could affect his major organs in the months to come. The burns also took Dustin's smile, something his until m other hadn't seen much of since the accident to Dustin made a new friend who just happens play power forward for the Utah Jazz. Karl Malone 'The Mailman" delivered Dustin's first true smile as Dustin and Kris sat with Malone's wife, Kay, during the season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers last week. ". :.; ? The chance meeting Occured when Dustin went to the circus his first outing since the accident. it ' !S i? $ lit Photo courtesy of Dustin Aldous Dustin Aldous and Karl Malone are all smiles as the Utah Jazz power forward presents Dustin with his autographed game shoes. Kdrl (Malone) was very comfortable communicating with Dustin. He showed a genuine interest and concern. Dustin has always been a Jazz fan and was honored Malone would take some time away from his family to visit with him.f r, Kris called circus organizers and explained her The two talked about the accident, surgeries and Dustin's friends. Malone told Dustin he had a new friend and asked which Jazz game Dustin wanted to attend as a guest. Dustin chose the Lakers game since he and his uncle who lives in Los Angeles, have an ongoing family debate. , Dustin decided his mother would accompany him since she's the family's biggest Jazz fan. She has a basketball signed by the team (and protected in a e cutout of Malglass case) as well as a one she pulls out at the height of the basketball season. Despite excitement about the game, Dustin was but then again apprehensive about a public outing not everyone is personally invited to one of the biggest games of the season by the Malones. Kris Kris Aldous ankles, he signed a personal message on his game shoes and presented them to Dustin, along with his game sweatbands. Kris said the two talked for a little while and Karl gave Dustin words of encouragement and said they'd meet again. Kris said it's the first time she's seen her son truly happy with a real smile since the accident. Dustin giggled the entire way home and was up well into the night sharing his experiences by telephone with his father, who was out of town on business. The Malones aren't the only ones who've opened their hearts to help the family. The University of Utah Burn Unit staff, Hill employees, religious orga- nizations, friends and family are among those who continue to help with Dustin's recovery. The Contracting Directorate and Kris' continue to donate hundreds of hours of leave, which has allowed Kris to be at her son's side during some of the most difficult periods. Before the accident, she'd accumulated several hours that were quickly depleted due to the intensive care Dustin required. "Because of my self pride I had a very difficult time agreeing to ask for the voluntary leave. With the encouragement of my management, I agreed to request the help," Kris said, fighting back tears. "I believe it was in excess of 400 hours. It's extremely" humbling. Not only the leave, but the overall love, compassion and friendship from the people I've worked with for all these years. "And of course all their prayers I know that rs that's where myself and my family gained the strength to keep going. That same type of love came from everywhere. Our family's been very lucky. Even the director of contracting Morris Goodrich and his wife and my division chief Ron Pauling and his wife made a visit to the hospital to console me. "I want everyone to know how compassionate the directorate is. I just think it's a wonderful family that we have in PK. Leave donations are anonymous so I want to take this opportunity to thank everybody that thought of me," she said. Dustin still has a long way to go on the physical, mental and emotional levels before he's fully recovered and he continues to experience both good and bad days. Kris said Dustin is looking toward the day when he will share his experiences with other burn victims and let them know that if he made it through the rough times, so can they. "He enjoys working with computers and has already mastered typing with his knuckles," she said. "None of us looks too far into the future. We try each day at a time. He realizes there's a reason he lived though such tragedy and there's a purpose for him to be here with his earthly family. , ' "And he, along with his family, trust someday we'll son's burns and his reluctance to go out in public -Organizers provided second row, center court tickets directly behind the Malone family. During intermission, the basketball star sat next to Dustin and asked questions about the accident as Kris interpreted. - "Karl was very comfortable communicating with understand." ; ' J . |