TEQUESTA, Fla. -- Luca Annunziata fell Nov. 28 while playing a casual game of roller hockey with his family.
He was not wearing a helmet and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Luca was airlifted to St. Mary's Medical Center airlifted to St. Mary's Medical Center where he was rushed into the operating room for surgery on his brain.
Luca's parents were told he may never wake up. Two months later Luca's recovery is being called a miracle.
At the Annunziata house it's still Christmas. The stockings are hung and the Elf on the Shelf sits comfortably on a sofa table. "One thing that I requested was that we keep them up until he gets out of the hospital," explained Luca's mother Darby Annunziata. "If it was April or June it didn't matter, we were gonna keep them up and that's what we're gonna do this whole month."
Luca came home Saturday. Escorted to his driveway by the same emergency medical technicians who rushed him to the hospital in November. "It was a very emotional time because these sirens were now of course happy sirens," Darby said.
Happy sirens because Luca is not only home, but he's walking, talking and doing things his parents were told he may never do again.
"We were told that most likely he would need a wheelchair and a walker," Darby detailed. "And it would a totally different experience than what it is so just having him home and doing all the things that he used to do it's an amazing feeling."
Luca doesn't remember much about his accident but he knows one thing for sure; there's an angel watching over him.
"I'm very lucky and very fortunate that I'm still here," Luca said.
After spending close to two months in the hospital, in a coma, then pushing himself through physical therapy and relearning things he loves to do, like how to hold a fishing rod.
"I was playing lacrosse, getting back to lacrosse," Luca said describing his physical therapy. "We were riding a bike this like three wheel bike. And we were like working on legs and she would stretch me out after every PT."
Improving and gaining strength each day before hearing his never give up attitude and hard work had paid off. Luca learned he would be going home January 29th.
"It's a miracle," Luca said. "And thanks to everybody's prayers now I'm back."
Luca's family is sharing updates on his condition on Facebook using #prayforluca. There's also a Go Fund Me page set up to help offset costs related to his injury.
