Mother says she’s lucky son survived crash

While four families mourn the loss of their teens killed in a car crash last month on Highway 30 near Clatskanie, Ore., one mother said she considers herself the "lucky one" because her son survived.

Dustin Leitzell, 18, came home from the hospital Tuesday. On Wednesday night his mother said it’s been an overwhelming few weeks.

"It's horrific. You never want to get that phone call,” said Genny Blaker, Leitzell’s mother.

Blaker said her son survived because he wasn’t wearing a seatbelt and was ejected from the crash. It’s a fact she said that hasn’t set in yet.

"It's going to take a while for him to really process it,” Blaker said. “I mean it's been hard for me, you know, and I can't even imagine what's going through his head right now."

But she said she has processed an important lesson, which is to never take anything for granted.

"Make sure when you send your kid somewhere … make sure you tell them how much you love them. Don't let the last thing you say to one of your loved ones be a hurtful thing," she said.

 With the loss of Leitzell’s teammates Aja Gerrity, Amanda Williams, Richard Araiza, and Jason Carter, Blaker said she knows how lucky she is to have her teen home.

"Thanking God … everyday because he definitely has a plan for him," she said.

 A plan she said that will be slow coming as her son recovers and deals with the tremendous loss and reality of coming so close to death.

"There is nobody to blame. It was an accident. It could have happened to any of us," Blaker said.

Blaker said her son is wearing a neck brace and so far has made it without any surgeries. She said he is currently not on any pain medication, and that Leitzell still plans to head off to boot camp and to serve in the Navy once all of this is behind him.