Mike Farris grateful for wife’s safe recovery from overturned vehicle during snowstorm

By Lynn R. Mitchell

As Arctic conditions moved into Virginia Saturday night, Michael Farris was thankful for the safety of his wife who was rescued from her overturned vehicle that had landed in icy water during the howling winds, frigid temps, and snowy, sometimes whiteout, conditions.

In a post on Facebook early Sunday morning, Farris recounted what happened:

Praising God for protecting my wife’s life.

Vickie slid off the road in the midst of a snow storm. Her car veered into a creek/small pond while rolling over onto its roof. Numerous air bags deployed. She was driving a 2012 Chevy Tahoe. The OnStar system did not call for help. She was alone in the dark in a car filling with water.

Praise God that a man, a local volunteer firefighter, saw her car’s lights off the road. He stopped to help her. It took about 20 minutes to get her out of the car. She had been in the car for at least 10 minutes before he came by.

I went looking for her when she didn’t arrive. I saw a group of lights and cars and flashing about a quarter of mile from Vickie’s intended destination. Immediately, I saw her car off the road upside down in the water. I was scared beyond measure. The people helping said that they couldn’t get her out but were talking to her. I called out her name and she yelled so I could hear her. I was much relieved but still extremely anxious.

I went back to find a pick ax to break a window to get her out of the car. When I got back in about 4 minutes they had her out in the truck of the first man on the scene. He saved her life by stopping and by his courageous actions.

When the ambulance arrived I carried my wet, shivering wife to the ambulance. Her body temp had dropped to 94. Any longer in that freezing water and she was in real serious trouble.

She has some minor bruising by one eye and a bit of whiplash in her neck. But no broken bones, no cuts–in short, if you saw where she was you would agree that her good condition is nothing short of a miracle. She was taken by ambulance to the ER and was released after a couple hours.

We were going on vacation in the mountains and all of her clothes, medicines, her Bible that she has had for 30 years, specialty medical electronics, our son’s guitar amp, and more electronics, her glasses, and countless other things fell out of the car into the pond and have been lost or ruined.

We called a friend to come to the scene to get stuff out of the car before it was towed. It was gone before he could get there. But it was the biggest of blessings that he came. He climbed down a steep embankment into the pond and found Vickie’s purse and several other items.

His actions were courageous, selfless, and simply astonishing that he found her purse in those dramatically awful conditions–at serious risk to himself. Abe–you are a hero and a true friend.

Her car is totaled–I am sure.

And you know the ads about Geico being able to save you a bunch of money in 15 minutes or less? Well, at this point I have been on hold for the claims department for 47 minutes. Geico is merely wasting our time. OnStar’s failure nearly cost my wife her life.

Trust not in OnStar or Geico. Trust in the Lord God Almighty who sends selfless people to intercede. I am so profoundly grateful that Vickie didn’t spend any longer in that deadly freezing water.

Farris, a long-time advocate for homeschool rights, is well known to many across the country as the founder of Patrick Henry College and head of Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA).

We are grateful for the safe recovery of Vickie Farris in a situation that could have turned out much worse if a Good Samaritan had not come along when he did. Prayers for Vickie’s continued recovery and for the entire Farris family.