Two years after being in a serious tractor accident that broke his ribs, crushed his shoulder blades and fractured his arm, Paul Sprock has a simple mission.

“I don’t want to go back to the hospital, that’s for sure,” the Laddonia resident said. “I don’t want to get run over again.”

Sprock has shown tremendous improvement from his accident on May 31, 2021 that happened near his home, which is located on Highway K, just five miles north of the Montgomery County line. He has some arm trouble, but he doesn’t have much pain like he did two years ago.

“There are things that I can’t do now that I could do before,” Sprock said. “But I can’t complain at all. I’m still alive.”

Sprock’s sister, Amanda McCurdy, who is from Middletown, said she is thrilled that her brother is making progress after the accident.

“It brings me great joy to see my brother improve after his accident. It’s hard to believe it has been two years,” McCurdy said. “Will he be 100 percent? No. But to see how far he has come, it is amazing to me.”

After the accident, McCurdy started a benefit called Prayers For Paul to help pay medical bills, which totaled $56,000. A small portion of that money was raised after the first month.

“When I started the Prayers for Paul Sprock benefit, it was to get the word out to pray for my brother,” McCurdy said. “I was really not expecting a lot of donations, but let’s just say the generosity of others is humbling. I do not remember the exact amount we received, but I do know that it paid for Paul’s Life Flight and some of his medical bills.”

On the day of the accident, Sprock was operating a 20,000-pound John Deere tractor. It was hooked up to the bush hog rotary motor. Sprock was starting his tractor while standing on the ground beside it. Then, he got run over by the tractor and the bush mower. He was rushed to the University of Missouri-Columbia trauma center.

“The doctors at the University of Missouri-Columbia saved Paul’s life multiple times and we can’t thank them enough,” McCurdy said.

Sprock said he always thinks about the accident. He spent 17 days in the intensive care unit and later returned there after getting a blood clot in one of his lungs.

“Time flies,” Sprock said. “I spent 21 days in a hospital. I was unconscious for most of that time. The doctors were amazing.”

Sprock said he has a workout machine at his home that helps him get his strength back.

“I go and work out a little bit,” he said. “I did therapy for two to three months. That helped me get a lot of the motion back in my arm. Everything that I was doing in therapy is what I do on the farm anyway.”

Sprock does some truck pulling in his spare time. He said he received plenty of support from his truck-pulling friends after his accident.

“They all prayed for me,” Sprock said. “If it wasn’t for that praying, I don’t think I would have been here.”