Inner-Tubing Crash Is 2Nd Tragedy In One Week For Family From Duvall -- One Son Paralyzed; 1 Dies In Car Wreck

BELLEVUE - A 20-year-old Duvall man was partly paralyzed and in serious condition at Overlake Hospital Medical Center after a sledding accident dislocated his spine Tuesday morning.

Charles Bright, whose family and friends call Chuck, was riding an inner tube down a snowy slope when his tube crashed into a ditch, his aunt Debbie Hinzman said yesterday.

The accident, on a section of Odell Road near the home of Bright's grandfather in Monroe, was the second tragedy in less than a week to befall the Bright family. On Nov. 30, Bright's girlfriend and brother were killed in an automobile accident near Duvall.

"He was trying to relieve a little pressure from Michael dying," Hinzman said, referring to Chuck's brother Michael Bright. "And this has to go and happen."

Chuck's father, Bill Bright, said Chuck, another brother and five or six of their friends were sledding together when the accident happened.

A spokeswoman for Overlake said Bright is recovering from a two-hour surgery to fuse a dislocated vertebra in his neck. He can move one hand and a big toe, spokeswoman Susan Froyd said, but it is still too soon to tell if he will walk again.

"His doctor believes there is some room for optimism," she said.

The Brights are longtime residents of Duvall. Michael, who was 22 when his car crashed into the trees off Highway 206 last week, was the oldest of three brothers.

Michael Bright, LisaLinn Brown - Chuck Bright's girlfriend - and a third passenger, LeeAnn Walsh, were celebrating Brown's 24th birthday when their speeding car hit a tree and threw all of them out. They had planned to pick up Chuck Bright to join the celebration after he finished his landscaping job, Hinzman said.

Bill Bright spent the day at the hospital with his wife and youngest son, Jamie.

"I don't know how much more I can take," Bright said. "He took one from me, I don't know what else He wants."

Friends of the family have established two funds to help the Bright family. One is a memorial fund for Michael, the other to help with medical bills for Chuck. Donations may be sent to the Duvall Branch of Seafirst Bank, P.O. Box 1557 Duvall, WA 98019.

In addition, co-workers have started a collection fund for the family at Alyces Restaurant and Lounge on Main Street in Duvall where Chuck's mother Vicki Bright works.