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Show WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 8 - DIXIESUNNEWS.COM from DSU student como recover helps Faith, family laughter BY MARKEE HECKENLIABLE markeekaeDSN Jonah Tuttle wants to be on the field playing his favorite sport, but coaching will have to do for now. Tuttle, a sophomore psychology major from St. George, is now coaching the Dixie State University's Rugby Club after recovering from a longboarding accident in April 2016. Jonah Tuttle was in a coma for 28 days and received multiple brain surgeries to reduce swelling. But now he's smiling, walking, talking, working through course load this his semester, and even driving. Tuttle said he hopes to one 12-cre- dit day play rugby again. "It's nice to be around the guys, but it's frustrating to watch it," Tuttle said. "It's like when you play a sport and you see them, I want to be out there telling them what to do." Tyler Gulbransen, a close friend of Tuttle's from Grants Pass, Oregon, said he is like a cat with nine lives. "He does dumb stuff like that often," Gulbransen said. "So, I think after this last ac FLDS continued from page 8 happiness with them; if any of them came to me, I'd accept them at once." Looking past the cult life For Chatwin, transitioning to normal life took a long time. It took a full year after leaving the religion before she started attending the public high school in Hilda le. She stopped wearing her dress the day she started high school. "I remember the first day I wore pants," Chatwin said. "It was really weird." After starting high school, Chatwin said she couldn't get enough of learning and wanted to attend college. When she started at Dixie State University in the fall of 2016, she was the first person from her family to attend college. At DSU, meeting people from diverse backgrounds opened her eyes to a new perspective on the world. She said the change to university life wasn't too difficult because she had always been curious about the outside world and had wanted to meet new friends outside of Hilda le. "It made me more accepting because of how closed-minde- d I was before," Chatwin said. Chatwin isn't the only member attending DSU. Milton Williams, a junior human communication major from Orderville, left Hildale and the FLDS church with his mother when he was seven. Williams said people who leave the FLDS church often have no social skills, and college is not on their horizon because of how little they have when they leave ei-FL- Hilda le. Williams said he doesn't have many memories of has helped Saints him through his recovery. "I don't know how to cidenti, he's definitely on his ter-da-y last life." Jonah Tuttle's mom, Heather Tuttle, said he's constantly proving her and his doctors wrong. Doctors told her there was a slim chance of him waking up from his coma, and if he did wake up, he would only be able to open his eyes. He has recently been able to run and jump on a trampoline without getting dizzy or hurting his head. After his accident and surgeries, his doctors prepared his mom and family by saying he might not have a filter; he would laugh at inappropriate times or he would be impul- ex-FL- - , Even though it's hard to remember everything for Jonah Tuttle, he recalls having a conversation with God and Jesus Christ while in his coma. Jonah Tuttle said the conversation was mostly about the importance of women because he has a lot of women in his family. "I was told that women are very important for anyone's salvation because a man will be absolutely nothing without a wife," he said. "The wife will protect him and the powers that he'll hold. I was like 'clang' because that's pretty e , , ,t ; - , r , (7, ctt, 7 1"..1 t , k I 4 , C Z Z , ',, Jonah Tuttle, a sophomore psychology major from St. George, shows his support for the Dixie State University Rugby club during a match against the University of Nevada Las Vegas on Sat- him into a urday. Tuttle has seen major improvements after a longboarding accident sent coma. 28-da- ! y I Heather Tuttle wants her son to remember it's his responsibility to move forward, and it's OK to be mad, sad n and frustrated. She said he f i minds her of the saying from the movie "The Help" "yeti i is kind. You is smart. You is (and) make sure that everyone is OK." Ever since his accident, he said sometimes people will treat him like a child. Jonah Tuttle doesn't want to be babied. "It's just annoying when people treat you like you're nothing," he said. "I'm still alive. I can still communicate just fine." his career choice stems from a high school friend who struggled to maintain good grades and was held back after his mom died. "For a kid, that's hard enough to lose a parent, but for them to be held back is probably even harder," Jonah Tuttle said. "Counselors are there to fight for students against faculty or whoever important." Heather Tuttle said even though he might not be able to accomplish goals he had before his accident, she knows he'll be married, have children, and have a career in the future. He is now working on his education so he can one day become a high school counselor. His inspiration for According to brainline.org, 1.7 million people suffer from a traumatic brain injiny every year, and out of that number, 52,000 die. For Jonah Tuttle, the his faith in his religion Church ofJesus Christ of Lat "The experiences that come out of discussion (with students) sometimes indicate that there has been some kind of trauma; violation or sense of displacement," Armstrong said. "This was sometimes addressed in their writing. This sounds kind of philosophical, but they assert mastery over their past." By remembering her previous life in Hildale and keeping the dress in her closet, Chatwin said she is not ashamed of her past. "Hildale is part of who I am," Chatwin said. "I'm not willing to have a sister wife or anything, but I still accept the families that do because it's where I'm from." ) , said. "His personality hasn't changed," Heather Tuttle said. "He was more giggly, but he's always been giggly. Jonah has never had anger like they told me he was going to have." Statistically, others with injuries like Jonah Tuttle likely wouldn't have survived. lege. t,; describe it; he just says things as though he was just sitting next to God," Heather Tuttle sive. growing up in Hilda le, but his connections to the town have allowed him to have more understanding of people with an FLDS background. A young man who left Hilda le is currently living with Williams in his apartment in St. George, he said. "Polygamists kind of get a bad rap because people don't understand why they are the way they are," Williams said. "They come from a culture that is so strict and it's part of their beliefs that they're the only righteous 'ones...If people understood that it is a very sheltered environment that they come from, they'd have more patience with them." Stephen Armstrong, an associate professor of English, said he's had a few students in his classes who used to be FLDS members from Hildale. He said although anyone that attends college is intellectually gifted, it is often hard for these students to adjust to the social pressures of col- 1 1 important." "That's Jonah," EL ather Tuttle said. "It will be ' :n to see where he's going." - II 0 1 S graduates share t eir success - -- r- - it r . .. .,,' , t - . , . t . .. r , , i , ,,,,,,..,t1 ,,,,..,,.,, , ; , , , ti i i ' :" 0 i ,, i 41, mr 1 oo''' , 1 1 , ' , - .t 1.,..4.E.....4 er,,Ye !:: ,,:),'::,:. f ,',"' t, ..- ' ' . ; , ,- ,, ., , '' , , ',I F,t',,- - , - - - - ': m m li, : , , '' V. ,..., , - ' ., ;:.:, ' .,,1.- .:. ,.'..,....77,,,,,,,,,,,::.,.,,,::.::.:-. ., -- -. : ' ' , ....., i .,. , -. ,, ,,::,,,-- , ,s - -- ,,' ..,,,, i 4,,,, Tiffany Whitehead - Graduated in 2013 with a bachelor's in English with an in emphasis professional and technical writing. - Works as a technical writer for RizePoint, a company focused on corporate compliance. Who were your influences? "Cheri Crenshaw and Amijo Comeford and Brad Barry and Florence Bacabac and Steve Armstrong. All of them were really instrumental in shaping my Writing style, that was really, really helpful." - How did attending DSU help you in your field? "Because I went there and because I have the degree, it expanded my professional network exponentially. I have contacts throughout the technology industry. I now rub shoulders with professionals in the field who have worked for several decades and I just soak up every bit of information that they have. It has just opened up a world of networking opportunities for me. "Holding a bachelor's degree opened doors to opportunities that were previously closed me. What I mean is that before receiving my degree, I could not even apply for jobs that interested me because the minimum educational requirement was a bachelor's degree. Having a degree lets me choose if I want to apply for a position as opposed to automatically being excluded from even applying. "Earning the degree coupled with the career I'm in has given me a skill set that is transferable wherever I go. I own the knowledge that I've gained. That fact provides peace of mind and gives me confidence when I'm presenting myself as a candidate for any position. "It (getting a degree) tripled my earning power. My salary more than tripled since I got my degree, and that's saying something. Now I have a liveable wage if something happened to my husband, which I hope it doesn't, but if it did I have a liveable wage that I could support myself. That's a big deal, especially for women." ., 4 z.,,,,,.,,,.....,.,,,...,.,,,,,-,,,,..- , Tiffany Whitehead works at her desk in her home office in St. George as a technical writer for the corporate compliance firm RizePoint. Whitehead said graduating from Dixie State University helped triple her earning power. . . ,t'., 1, - -- N c;ot .. 'Z.611.,si,.., '16.-- ,Z- ,. - .1:,),..,,)-'.T, - s . - , '4-.,-.... o 1 r .I: i I .. , , ,...,....,,. i s , , , , ,. iti.i.1.,,As.zte....t....14mCZt.,es....-.0sweloslunts.iil- Dan Whalen stands on set of the television series "Extinct." Whalen graduated from Dixie State University in 2007 and has worked extensively in the motion picture and BYUtv-produc- ed television industry. Dan Whalen Graduated in 2007 with bachelor's in communication with film emphasis (only year it was configured as such.) Also holds a master of fine arts degree in directing for motion picture and television from the University of the Arts in San Francisco - Currently works as a location manager for the produced science fiction series "Extinct." - BY-UP- - Who were your influences? "Glen Blakely, he's been there a long time. He knows his stuff, he knows his art. He's had some experience in film and television back in the 80s. His knowledge of art, he's always encouraged me there...we're still good friends today. Even Eric Pedersen on the visual technology side, he Was such a cool professor, he was just super supportive, really just encouraged me. Those two for sure stick out in my mind." - How did attending DSU help you in your field? "Going to Dixie and then moving on to grad school, it's honing my interests and refining my skills and really finding what I like to do and something that I could do professionally along side that. My goal was to go to school so I can actually work in the film and television industry. What Dixie's prepared me for is really to go out in the world and , take what I learn and apply it. "I got hired on by a company called "extinct", which is the name of the TV show being produced for BYTJtv. I'm the location manager on the project. I knew what they needed and helped secure the locations for it. I work with the direc 1 tor to establish the locations based on what's written in the script. I kind of see myself in the second half of my career, I'd love for an assistant professorship position to open up with this new film degree. I'm looking at it as a second career. Still trying to produce and direct my own stuff, but I'd love to be able to maybe do that as a sitting professor at Dixie." , |
