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Published on 08/18/1997 All articles from this issue

Full post-fall recovery expected for injured St. Nicholas priest

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By Carol Tiegs / Town Crier Staff Writer

The Rev. Gary Thomas of St. Nicholas Catholic Church is anticipating a full recovery from injuries sustained in a hiking accident July 29.

Thomas and a friend were hiking in the Twain Hart area in Northern California when Thomas slipped and fell 60 feet down a cliff in the South Fork Stanislaus River canyon. He suffered a concussion, fractured skull, two broken neck bones, a broken right knee cap and a shattered right elbow from the fall.

"He was totally conscious at all times after the fall, " said Sister Barbara Nixon, acting pastor at St. Nicholas Church and principal of St. Nicholas School.

It took the combined efforts of the Tuolumne County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team, Ambulance and Fire Capartment; California Department of Forestry, Stanislaus National Forest; and Lemoore Naval Air Station to rescue Thomas from the steep, rocky terrain.

Nixon said Thomas was airlifted to Memorial North Medical Center in Modesto, where he underwent six hours of surgery, mostly to remove shattered bone.

After eight days in the hospital, he was transferred to a rehabilitation center near his parents' North Bay home for physical therapy

"His spirits are good," Nixon said. "He's anticipating a full recovery. There is absolutely no paralysis or nerve damage."

Thomas found himself in familiar hands at the hospital in Modesto. He had witnessed the marriage of one of the emergency room doctors and baptized a child of another.

"Father Gary wants to thank everyone for their prayers and support," Nixon said.

Thomas is not receiving visitors or phone calls during his recuperation. Cards and letters may be sent to him at St. Nicholas Catholic Church, 473 Lincoln Ave., Los Altos 94022.