04 th YEAR • ISSUE 72 • 12 PAGES COLLEGE STATION • TX
TOMORROW
TUESDAY • JANUARY 20 • 1998
PHOTOS COURTESY: DETROIT FREE PRESS
remember hitting
the running back and a
guy falling on top of
me. I remember telling
riy teammates I couldn't
breathe, and telling the
trainer I couldn't
breathe. Probably ten
seconds after that, I
faded away."
Reggie Broivn
Detroit Lions linebacker
Texas A&M’s Brown once again defined by his heart
By Jeremy Furtick
Sports Editor
A s millions of stunned viewers, team
mates and fans watched Detroit Lions
linebacker Reggie Brown lay on the turf
during a Dec. 21 game against the New York
Jets, these were the last thoughts the injured
player had before becoming unconscious; they
also were terrifyingly close to being his final
thoughts ever.
“He was not breathing. He was turning
cyanotic; his lips were turning blue,” Dr. Terry
Lock, Lions team physician, said. “Lie was
struggling in an attempt to breathe, but really
wasn’t getting the air. At that time, we started
mouth-to-mouth on him.”
Brown had suffered a dislocation of the first
and second cervical vertebrae, bruising the up
per portion of his spinal cord and essentially
causing the complete collapse of his ability to
breathe and to move his arms and legs. He was
immediately administered CPR, and in a short
time was given an IV stabilized on a spine board
and loaded into an ambulance.
Brown remained unconscious until arriving
at the hospital. He had no idea at that point
what had happened; there had not been any
time for tests, so the severity of the injury was
still unknown. His thoughts, however, were not
focused on his condition.
“I was just feeling lucky I was alive,” Brown
said. “I was just so happy to see the light.”
It seemed the worst was over. The transition
from his near-death experience on the field to
being conscious under the hospital’s care ap
peared to put Brown in the clear. But that was
not the case at all.
“When you have a contusion of the spine,
you get associated swelling, you can get bleed
ing, and all of that can damage the spine fur
ther and decrease the function of the spine,”
Dr. David Collon, Lions team physician, said.
“He’s still at risk of virtually anything, but again,
the odds of serious or worse complications de
crease as time goes on.”
Brown underwent successful fusion surgery
on the dislocated vertebrae the day after the
injury. Once again, he had escaped a critical
point in his attempted recovery, but again was
still facing potentially devastating results.
“An injury (like Brown’s) can increase in
time, within hours or within days,” Dr. Russell
Nockels said. “This kind of injury can perma
nently impair someone. So it’s very important
that we try to retard or prevent its progression.
“We’ll be making sure he doesn’t lose ground
neurologically. The fact that he doesn’t make
great strides is not necessarily a bad tiling.”
But Brown did make strides, and none more
impressive than the ones he took up to the
podium at a Jan. 7 press conference at Detroit’s
Henry Ford Hospital before traveling to Hous
ton to begin a stay at The Institute for Rehabil
itation Research (TIRR).
Brown began his rehab at TIRR already in the
upper two percent of the recovery rate of indi
viduals who sustain his type of injury, a feat that
excited and impressed his doctors in Houston.
But Brown did not simply go through the
motions at TIRR; he used his charisma and car
ing nature to aid other patients at the institute.
“Reggie was great. He was very motivated to
work and did whatever we asked him to,” Sher
ri Barash, Brown’s physical therapist, said. “He
really motivated the other patients and worked
with them. He wasn’t like, T’m an athlete, leave
me alone, I know what I’m doing.’”
Please see Brown on Page 9.
Celebration remembers
ife, legacy of Dr. King
By Stacey Becks
Staff writer
Students and community members observed
irtin Luther King Day during a birthday cele-
ition last night in Rudder Auditorium.
Dr. Ray M. Bowen, president of Texas A&M Uni-
rsity, welcomed the participants and said A&M
ould resemble King’s philosophies.
“He believed people could live in communities
brotherly love,” he said. “The A&M community
eds to be an example of brotherly love.”
About 400 people participated in the program
remembrance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
The program was sponsored by the Depart-
;nt of Multicultural Services, Department of
sidence Life and the Office of the Vice President
' Student Affairs.
Kevin Carreathers, director of Multicultural
rvices and a co-coordinator of the program, said
i celebration was a remembrance of King’s life
d philosophy.
“The program is to commemorate the life and
;acy of Dr. King,” he said. “It’s to continue to
share Dr. King’s dream.”
During the program, Trenton Manley and Mil-
ton Lindsey, students at Neal Elementary in Bryan,
together presented what King meant to them.
They ended with the statement “Be thyself,
young, gifted and black,” with a standing ovation
from the audience.
Becky Petitt, head of the Office of Diversity Ed
ucation and co-coordinator of the Martin Luther
King Day program, said the program was a way to
link Texas A&M to the surrounding community.
“It’s a great opportunity to collaborate with the
community,” she said. “We have always gotten a
good response to the program.”
Eric Curley, president of Alpha Phi Alpha fra
ternity, said he thinks so many people show up be
cause of King’s contributions to all people.
“The reason it gets such a good response is be
cause of who we are honoring,” he said. “Dr. King
helped not just black people, but people as a
whole.” i
Curley said the entire Alpha Phi Alpha fraterni
ty attends this program every year because King
was a member of Alpha Phi AJpha.
BRANDON BOLLOM/The Battalion
Trenton Manley and Milton Lindsay of Neal Elementary in
Bryan explain what “Dr. Martin Luther King Means To Me” at
a celebration Monday night in Rudder Tower.
lave a Dream’; Students
lect on words, teachings of
artin Luther King Jr.
See Page 3
Women’s Basketball
am falls to Iowa State at
me Saturday, 68-52.
See Page 7
■gynfwmroiggBi
llett: Diversity’s future de-
nds on non-discriminatory
missions.
See Page 11
mm
Iplp^/bAttalion.tamu.edu
»ok up with state and
tional news through
e Wire, AP’s 24-hour
line news service.
Beutel aims to educate students on
keeping their New Year’s resolutions
By Amanda Smith
Staffwriter
With a number of Texas A&M students
making New Year’s resolutions, The Beutel
Health Center is providing information and
programs to help students with goals for
good health.
Dr. Jane Cohen, a nutrititionist at the
health center, said students must have a
plan when laying out healthful resolutions
for the new year.
“Students need to give specifics when
they declare their New Year’s resolutions,”
Cohen said. “(They can be) like running 30
minutes a day or cutting down on their con
sumption of fatty foods.”
Cohen said college students tend to
show deficiencies in Vitamins A and C. Vit
amin A is found in foods like broccoli,
spinach and red cabbage. Vitamin C is
found in fruits such as oranges and in many
fruit juices, Cohen said.
“University students are smart enough
to understand how to eat healthy,” Cohen
said. “Students may get tired over during the
semester with other things.”
To increase awareness this semester,
health center will
continue to offer
programs that in
clude dietary analyses and programs in
conjunction with the Student Recre
ation Center.
“This year, we are going to work on a
fruit-and-vegetable emphasis,” Cohen said.
“Part of the population has varying prob
lems with food issues.”
As part of the healthful awareness activi
ties this semester, the health center will offer
a week of programs on maintaining a healthy
weight at the end of January and a week pro-
factoid.
College students tend to show
deficiencies in Vitamins A & C,
which are found in vegetables
and fruits.
• Dr. Jane Cohen, Beutel Health Center
mmim
c/r/l
grams focused on eating disorders like
anorexia and bulimia at the end of Febmary.
Both weeks will be promoted by univer
sities across the nation.
Students on special diets or faced with
weight problems may seek help at the
health center, Cohen said.
In addition to healthy eating, Cohen said
students should get some exercise. Nation
al recommendations are 30 minutes a day,
four days a week.
Winter holiday
prompts closure,
limited hours at
some B-CS stores
By Kelly Hackworth
Staffwriter
Some Bryan-College Station businesses experi
enced a decrease in revenue when the majority of
Texas A&M University students left the area during the
winter break.
Several businesses decreased their hours, while
others closed altogether. Although the owners felt the
“The winter break is the worst because
more people leave town for the winter
break than any other holiday.”
AARON BROWN
MANAGER, SWEET EUGENE’S
absence of the students, the permanent residents of
Bryan-College Station continued to support the area
businesses during the break.
The businesses which suffered the most were those
closest to campus and in the Northgate area.
Aaron Brown, manager of Sweet Eugene’s in Col
lege Station and owner of the Copasetic Cafe, said Eu
gene’s business was cut in half during the break.
“Even though the permanent residents come out
more once the students are gone, there is still a signif
icant drop,” Brown said. “The winter break is the worst
because more people leave town for the winter break
than any other holiday.”
Double Dave’s Pizza in Northgate saw a greater-
drop in business than their other area locations.
Double Dave’s manager Kevin Hartley said the
restaurant lost about 50 percent of its business during
the break. Hartley said they also closed their doors two
hours earlier than usual.
Some businesses opted to cut costs by closing down
during the winter break.
Burton Creek Pub closed for the entire break, and
Freebird’s in Northgate remained open for 10 days be
fore closing for renovations. The Copasetic Cafe in
Northgate also closed in anticipation of a slower
crowd.
Bullwinkle’s Grill and Bar in College Station saw lit
tle change in its lunch and dinner crowd, but alcohol
sales decreased.
The College Station Chili’s business was slower, but
activities at the George Bush Presidential Library kept
business steady throughout the break, manager Mark
Koenig said.
Business at Jason’s Deli was “down considerably,”
manager Audra Larkins said.
She said the lack of A&M students attributed to
the decrease.