4-Year-Old Crash Survivor Is 'A Very Determined Little Girl'

Physical therapists at Tampa General Hospital hope to have 4-year-old Summer Moll back on her feet in three months.

Summer's grandmother, Tammy Rosian, thinks the therapists are in for a surprise.

"She's a very determined little girl," Rosian said. "She's very strong-willed. She doesn't take no for an answer. If she isn't walking by her birthday in February, I'll be surprised."

In the meantime, the Brandon girl proudly peels back the Disney-print quilt a sympathetic stranger made for her. She demonstrates how she can wiggle her toes. Both legs are wrapped in fresh bandages from toe to thigh after surgery the day before to remove 12 pins that were placed in them when the tiny bones were crushed Sept. 10.

"I was in a car accident," Summer says matter-of-factly. "My mom died. She's in heaven."

Sitting on the table beside the favorite chair in which she sits is a photo of Summer and her mother, Jennifer O'Boyle. Draped across the photo are gifts from relatives and strangers: a set of rosary beads, a necklace with a mother-and-child charm and a guardian angel charm.

On a rare day off from work and school, O'Boyle decided to take her daughter to Treasure Island for a day at the beach to celebrate her 25th birthday Sept. 11. The mother and daughter barely made it out of Brandon before a 2008 Honda sport utility vehicle heading the wrong way on the lower portion of the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway -- just east of the 78th Street toll plaza -- struck O'Boyle's 1998 Pontiac head-on. The driver of the SUV, Cheryl Maria Riemann, 25, of Ruskin, was charged with DUI manslaughter. Her blood-alcohol level was nearly three times the level at which Florida law presumes intoxication.

Unmarried and unable to reconcile with Summer's father, Joshua Adam Moll, O'Boyle and her daughter had been living with her mother and stepfather, Art Rosian, in Brandon since Summer was an infant. O'Boyle was waitressing at Cracker Barrel restaurant on State Road 60 in Valrico while attending school to become a certified nursing assistant.

"Jen was a very hard worker," Tammy Rosian said. "Her main concern was for her daughter. She never had a chance to enjoy life."

Rosian was at work at Suncoast Credit Union when she received a call from her 17-year-old son, Zachary. A sheriff's deputy was at the house asking about Jennifer.

"I headed home. I was right there on Kings [Avenue], a couple of blocks away from the house, and heard about the accident on the radio," Rosian said. "When I got home, I said, 'Please tell me they're alive.'

"But they said Jennifer died right away, and they didn't think Summer would make it."

For two weeks, Rosian couldn't bring herself to visit her granddaughter at Tampa General Hospital, couldn't bear to see her in so much pain, hooked to life-support machines and monitors, knowing it was a matter of time before she would die.

"I knew I couldn't handle it," she said. She preferred to remember the vivacious little girl who started talking early and then never stopped and loved playing princess.

Rosian was at a memorial service for her daughter in their native Chicago when she received word that Summer was conscious and would survive.

"I went straight home, and I haven't left her side since," Rosian said.

The little girl's condition remained critical. In addition to her crushed legs, both arms were broken and there was a puncture in her cranium that had exposed the brain. Doctors had to put a metal plate in her head to protect the brain. She has had three surgeries on her head and will have a fourth, including a skin graft, in three weeks.

"Even the doctors and nurses say it's miraculous how far she's come," Rosian said. "Part of it's due to her spirits, but I think a big part of it is prayer. I think everybody's prayers are what's gotten her through this."

Rosian hasn't been able to thank everyone who has sent cards. She has sent out more than 300 thank-you notes to people who have sent donations and gifts. The thank-you cards feature a photo of Summer holding a giant red heart bearing the words "I love you." The photo was taken at her day care center, Sunshine Ranch, as a gift for her mother's last Mother's Day. When Summer can to return to school, she will have a full scholarship from Sunshine Ranch.

"I can't begin to tell you what the support of the community has meant," Rosian said. The fundraisers, such as the benefit organized by Durant High School students in November, are especially appreciated, she said. Rosian took leave under the Family Medical Leave Act to care for her granddaughter. The leave will be over in a few days; then she will have to give up her job at the credit union.

"The woman who hit my daughter was underinsured, and the medical bills for Summer are going to be astronomical," Rosian said.

A trust has been established for Summer through the office of Mac Greco III, Rosian's attorney. Anyone wishing to donate can mail checks payable to Tammy Rosian as trustee of the Summer Moll trust to his office at 501 N. Morgan St., Suite 200, Tampa FL 33602.

In the meantime, the Rosians say they are pleased with the custody agreement reached Monday with Summer's father. Moll moved to Tampa from Texas the day after the crash, rented an apartment near the hospital, obtained a maintenance job at Tampa General Hospital and was seeking custody of his daughter. Moll has agreed to see his daughter on weekends.

"Summer doesn't know him," Rosian said. "I think he should be part of her life. He's her father. He should have visitation. But he's never been around for her. We're the only family that she knows."

The Rosians haven't bothered to put up Christmas decorations. They know Summer most likely will be back in the hospital in a week to begin physical therapy. They'll celebrate the holidays at Tampa General. Or maybe they'll wait and celebrate Christmas when Summer comes home, Rosian said.

Santa might have a heck of a time sneaking Summer's Christmas gift into the hospital.

"Summer, tell Memaw what you want for Christmas," Rosian said.

"A white puppy," Summer shouted.