$22,000 raised for deputy

Adair County Sheriff's Deputy Jeff Pitts fought death after suffering a life-threatening head injury while on duty less than three months ago. Last Saturday, he fought back tears after being pinned with the Purple Heart for Injured Deputies in Missouri.

A benefit event for Deputy Pitts was hosted last Saturday night at the NEMO Fairgrounds. Event coordinator Melissa Hocker said a total of $22,000 has been raised since the accident, and the benefit raised money by selling supper tickets for $5 each and holding a silent auction and a raffle for two guns. She estimated more than 500 people attended. Local country singer Becky Reeves and the band True Grit provided entertainment for the evening.

Pitts was clearing a deer from Highway 6 when he slipped and fell 12 feet onto a concrete culvert Dec. 2, 2010. Mike Hines was on his way to work the night of the accident when he saw Pitts' truck in the road. Hines said that after three or four minutes of waiting behind the truck, he left his vehicle to investigate. After hearing a noise from the side of the road, Hines went through Pitts' truck to find a flashlight. Hines then looked over the edge of the road and saw Pitts lying unconscious on the ground.

"That's when I called 911, then went down there and stayed with him until they got there," Hines said.

Promptly after first response efforts, Pitts was air evacuated to Columbia University Hospital. After being treated by paramedics and an Emergency Response team, Pitts was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit a few hours later.

Hines received an award and a plaque on behalf of the Adair County Sheriff's Office for his "life-saving actions." Hines and Pitts were reunited Saturday for the first time since the accident.

Tami O'Haver, a Department of Public Safety officer, said she is best friends with Pitts. She was traveling to work when she received a call about the accident. She immediately drove to Columbia to be at Pitts' bedside for two days without sleep. O'Haver said that since the accident, she has grown close with Pitts' family.

"I wanted him to be okay," Pitts' brother, Glen Pitts said. "He's my twin brother. We've been very close from day one. I was just hoping and praying that he'd be okay."

Two weeks after Pitts was hospitalized, he was transferred to Howard A. Rusk Rehabilitation Center in Columbia.

"It's been slow," Georgiana Pitts, Jeff's mother  said. "He's really worked hard. He doesn't remember anything except maybe the last two weeks he was at the rehab."

Georgiana said she spent Christmas Day and New Years Eve with him at the rehabilitation center. Pitts was released Jan. 14th as an outpatient and currently goes to rehab three days per week.

"It's been difficult and it's been trying, and even when I've been having a good day, things will happen," Pitts said. "You just work through it and you find a way."

O'Haver, who was one of the event's main organizers, said the idea for a benefit started out as a conversation among herself and event coordinators Larry Logston and Melissa Hocker.

"We said with everything that's going on, this is going to be pretty serious, this is going to be a pretty long-term thing," O'Haver said. "We ought to see about organizing [the benefit]."

O'Haver said she expected people to show up, but she didn't expect to have to set up additional tables within the first hour of the event.

"I'm so proud of this community and they're great people," Pitts said. "They have no idea. They're just awesome people."

Adair County Sheriff Robert Hardwick said Pitts has been missed by many friends and members of the Kirksville community.

"It's a tragic accident," Hardwick said. "I miss him. He's a very caring individual. He does his job very well. If you need a personal touch of a particular situation that you're dealing with, I could pick up the phone and say, ‘Jeff, I've got this going on or that going on. Can you stop by and visit these people or take care of this for me?' [He'd say] ‘It's taken care of and you don't have to worry about it.'"

Pitts said his goal is "to get better and come back to work."

"I do believe he'll get back into law enforcement," Georgiana said. "I think he still has some things that he has to sort out as far as thought process, but he's working on that in rehab, and he's come a long way."

Georgiana said Pitts' doctors said that after suffering a severe brain injury, a patient cannot drive for at least six months, which would be June for Pitts. He will take a cognitive assessment at the end of March.

"By the way, I look forward to coming back to work," Pitts said in a speech. "All I need is a gun and car keys."

Donations can be made payable to Jeff Pitts Benefit.