Aidan Brady and Addyson Campbell were crowned prom king and queen, and everyone arrived home safely with lasting high school memories. “I loved their message; there is no need to speed, and always wear your seatbelt,” said Brandon Robinson. (Photo Provided By Barry Johnson; Lisa M. GeraCHARLOTTE — Prom season brings to mind final alterations and hair appointments, but this year two Charlotte Catholic High School students want to make sure their peers also have safe driving habits on their minds.
Abby Lynn Robinson and Isabella Tarantelli were critically injured in a car wreck that killed two of their friends after prom last year. In advance of this year’s prom, they shared their story for the first time during a March 31 program.
They asked Sarah Smith, event organizer and director of Student Health Services, to take the stage during a presentation she had scheduled with Shelli Braedon, state program director for MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving).
The program was to convince students to take MADD’s “Promposal”: pledging to have a substance-free prom night, plan for a safe ride home, and never ride with an impaired driver.
Although their experience did not involve alcohol, the girls thought the program was perfectly timed to share their story with their peers.
Sharing their stories
Charlotte Catholic High School students Abby Lynn Robinson and Isabella Tarantelli were critically injured in a car wreck that killed two of their friends after prom last year. They shared their story before juniors and seniors attended this year’s prom on Saturday, April 5. “Isabella and Abby’s story was really important to hear right before prom. It is so fresh on people’s minds,” said Lucy McArdle.A hush fell over the crowd as Tarantelli and Robinson took the stage to share their story with more than 500 juniors and seniors gathered in the school’s Fine Arts Center.
“It was supposed to be a great night of my high school experience, my very first prom ever, a night of laughter and dreams,” Tarantelli began. “Instead, it became a nightmare that forever changed my life. It is a day I will never forget. A day that became a 652-hour, or a 27-day-long blur that changed the entire trajectory of my life.”
April 6, 2024, prom night at Christ School in Asheville, was full of dancing, good food, TikTok videos and laughter until the girls – Tarantelli, Robinson and her friend Sophie Gordon from Myers Park High School – and their three dates loaded into a Volvo to return to their hotel for the night. The next thing Tarantelli and Robinson remember, they woke up in a hospital room.
Police later said the car was speeding on I-40 when it ran off the road on a curved ramp and crashed into a tree. Gordon, 16, and Robert (RJ) Fox, 19, died at the scene. Tarantelli and
Robinson were taken to Mission Hospital in Asheville in critical condition.
Robinson recalls waking up in the hospital confused and terrified. “The pain in my stomach was so overwhelming, and when I looked in the mirror, I remember I couldn’t even recognize myself,” she said. “I had scars and a shaved head.”
The worst of it was that her best friend, Gordon, whom she had known since the sixth grade, was gone. Robinson reminisced through a childhood full of sleepovers, jokes and fun growing up together.
“She was more than a friend, she was family,” she said. “I want everybody to understand the degree of the choices we make.”
When Tarantelli woke from a coma, she couldn’t move or speak. She had 38 broken bones, including her neck, back, femur and scapula. Doctors were unsure if she would survive. Her body was so shattered, her parents could not even hold her.
“I want you to imagine: you wake up in a hospital bed, there are IVs in your arms, you are seeing a very plain room, and you don’t recognize the people around you,” she said. To emphasize her story, she showed the student audience graphic photos of herself in the hospital: tubes in her nose, folded towels holding up her head, and deep, bloody wounds on her forehead.
As her body slowly healed, Tarantelli endured five grueling months of physical therapy. The once carefree, straight-A student was gone, she said. Small victories became monumental as she relearned everything – eating, speaking, reading, thinking and walking.
“I can never forget the tears in my parents’ eyes when I took my first steps towards them, an awkward little waddle,” Tarantelli remembered. “Every step I take now is not only for myself but for RJ and Sophie, because they can’t do it for themselves. Every step I take is filled with pride, honor and strength.”
Prayers answered
She thanked Charlotte Catholic High School for the support she received, from the plastic jar filled with cards she kept by her bedside, to the spiritual flower her English teacher Jeremy Kuhn gave her, to the prayer services the school community held, to the hours of prayer teachers led in class.
School President Kurt Telford said, “We have two miracles – both Isabelle and Abby. Our prayers were answered. There has been a lot of praying since April 6, and we continue praying.”
Even Bishop Michael Martin, a few days after becoming bishop-elect, visited the school in the wake of the crash and prayed for the two girls’ recovery.
“Each and every one of you that has prayed for me at one time, I just want you to know that I am forever grateful,” Tarantelli said as she twirled around in a circle on stage. “I want you to look at me and know this is what you prayed for, standing in front of you and talking to you.”
Despite 16 scars on her leg and one across her forehead, permanent reminders of that night, Tarantelli sees a wonderful outcome through all the pain.
A week before the accident, she had received the sacrament of confirmation, but she did not consider herself a strong believer.
It took almost dying for her to fully accept Christ, she said.
“Now I turn to Him in all my moments. I could not have made it through any of this without the power of faith, prayer and God’s promise.”
— Lisa Geraci
MADD statistics
MADD’s Shelli Braedon,shared these statistics:
A drunk-driving crash claimed the life of someone in the U.S. about every 39 minutes, according to 2021 data from the National Highway Safety Traffic Administration.
That year in Mecklenburg County alone, there were 6,123 crashes involving teenagers, and 1,382 of those were alcohol-related, she said, citing the North Carolina 2021 Traffic Crash Facts report.
She also noted that while 70% of teenagers refrain from drinking, 26% said they would get into a car with an impaired driver.
The legacy of Sister Thea Bowman, a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration known for her work encouraging Black Catholics to be proud of their heritage and their faith, was honored at St. Mary Church. (Christina L. Knauss | Catholic News Herald) GREENSBORO — Catholic students from North Carolina A&T University spent a recent Saturday praying, discussing their faith and worshipping together at a Day of Reflection honoring the 35th anniversary of the death of Sister Thea Bowman, the namesake for the center of Catholic ministry on their campus – Thea House.
Sister Thea Bowman was a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration known for her work encouraging Black Catholics to be proud of their heritage and their faith. The granddaughter of enslaved people, she was a convert to the faith and the only Black member of her order. She overcame racism and left a historic legacy when she died in 1990 at the age of 52.
In 2018, her cause for canonization was launched by the Diocese of Jackson, Mississippi, and she was named a Servant of God, the first of four steps on the road to sainthood.
The Day of Reflection was organized by Father Marcel Amadi, who serves as campus minister at North Carolina A&T and High Point University.
“We decided to honor her life and times because not only is our campus ministry named after her, but Sister Thea Bowman can serve as such a model for Black Catholics,” Father Amadi said.
“Sister Thea experienced struggles, and I tell the students I work with here not to ever relent, to keep striving. As Catholic students at an HBCU, her work and experience can teach them a lot.”
The daylong event was held at St. Mary Church in Greensboro. Father Amadi said some parishioners from the church joined in the activities, including families, a man who brought his daughter and a 12-year-old boy who attended because he wanted to learn more about his faith.
Participants prayed together, went to confession, listened to talks, held discussions and took part in Eucharistic Adoration. The day concluded with Mass attended by more parishioners.
Fran Acosta, director of development for the diocese’s Campus Ministry program, gave one of the talks.
“I am a Secular Franciscan and since Sister Thea Bowman was a Franciscan, it just was natural for me to participate,” Acosta said. “I called on Sister Thea to help me plant the seeds not just of Catholic faith, but bringing our cultures and our talents to our faith. It was nice to see the diversity in the audience. We had an age group from 12 years old to people in their 70s.”
She said the example of Sister Thea Bowman was powerful motivation.
“You know someone is amazing when, even after death, they still have such a presence,” Acosta said.
The Day of Reflection was one of many events that Thea House offers students at North Carolina A&T. During Lent, they have been taking part in praying the Stations of the Cross. They regularly attend Mass together and participate in Eucharistic Adoration. Students participate in Bible study and other gatherings, and along with Father Amadi offer a public witness to their devotion to the Blessed Mother by praying the rosary together at a Marian grotto in front of Thea House.
Father Amadi said between 25 and 30 students regularly take part in events at Thea House. They come from around North Carolina as well as several states including Louisiana and New York, and many are international students.
Wisdom Calmday, a mechanical engineering major, said the Day of Reflection was an added bonus to the spiritual benefits he gets from regular participation in campus ministry.
“For me, Thea House has become more than just another club or association – it’s a source of motivation to keep up my faith,” Calmday said. “Whether it’s going to Mass on Sundays or heading to confession, being part of this community encourages me to stay spiritually grounded even in the midst of academic and personal challenges.”
Calmday cited a quote from Sister Thea Bowman, “God is present in everything,” and said his experience with campus ministry bears that out.
“Campus ministry is a place where I can feel that presence more profoundly during any one of our gatherings.”
— Christina Lee Knauss