On the morning of Tuesday, September 4, college sophomore Meghan Hancock was running on the track of Abilene Christian University for her Lifetime Wellness class, when she collapsed.

It was a normal day for Mackenzie, Madison and Morgan Hancock- it started out like any other school day would for two juniors and a senior. Until, in first period, they were called down to their volleyball coach’s office and saw their parents there with Coach Ryan Mitchell. They were informed that their older sister, Meghan, had been put in a medically induced coma because her blood pressure, heart rate, and temperature were fluctuating dangerously. Doctors could not determine how long Meghan was without oxygen in her brain, but she would have to remain in the coma as the doctors slowly warmed her body.

Mackenzie, Madison and Morgan were overwhelmed with the news at first.

“I heard my dad’s voice and my mom crying and my heart dropped,” junior Madison said. “I instantly started to cry because I didn’t want Meghan down there by herself going through this.”

The Hancocks drove to ACU immediately to be with Meghan as on Wednesday and Thursday the cooling system was removed slowly. It was determined that Meghan has an extremely weak heart, a fact which surprised the family because she has been active all throughout high school and college.

On Friday, Meghan opened her eyes and when asked if her name was Meghan, she nodded.

Meghan’s former volleyball coach, Ryan Mitchell, came to visit her on Sunday, as well as her sisters again and a friend, junior Lindy Leggett. Hancock was in American Sign Language in high school and while Leggett was not, she understood the alphabet and Meghan managed to communicate to Leggett that she needed to use the restroom through sign language.

“It was a big thing because she hadn’t been able to speak yet,” Leggett said. “It was cool that she could communicate to us and use what she learned in a class.”

Monday the breathing tubes were removed at 10 a.m. and Meghan, though her throat is still too sore to speak, has been able to communicate through a pad of paper and a pencil. Meghan’s recovery, while slow, is steady, and her family and doctors have been very pleased with her progress.

This event has been trying on the family, but in the midst of so much worry and pain, there was a bright spot: the family grew closer together.

“Our family has always been very close, but to see a daughter/sister go through this we really leaned on each other for support,” junior Mackenzie said.

Since Meghan’s collapse, the Hancocks have also been overwhelmed with prayers and support from the Lovejoy community.

“Lovejoy is awesome,” senior Morgan said. “I was so happy to be apart of this school. So many families and friends have done so much. I don’t know how I can ever thank them all.”

“The Lovejoy community is like a family,” Madison said. “And when family needs help, they’re always there to do anything that needs to be done.”

One such example is the PALS class at the high school, which Mackenzie, Morgan and Madison have all been a part of, making a poster for all students to sign and collected donations during lunch.

Social media sites have started to spread updates on Meghan’s condition. The Facebook page Praying for Meghan and twitter #PrayingForMeghan have posted daily on her progress. In less than a week, Praying For Meghan on Facebook has nearly 3,000 likes.

Although this experience has been difficult for the Hancocks, they are thankful that Meghan is alive and recovering and were grateful for all the support that they have received.

“It has showed me how fast life can change,” Morgan said. “You don’t ever think it can happen to you or your family.”

Faith has been an important factor for Morgan and the rest of the Hancocks.

“God has truly showed me how blessed I am, even with this going on I have never lost my faith in God,” Morgan said. “Lean on him and everything will be okay. Faith can go a very long way. This is just a bump in the road, but Meg is a very strong person and will fight through this.”