LABELLE, Fla. - "We've just been praying ever since and just trying to keep up with the news. [I] check in everyday and check how they are doing but I know by God's grace, they are going to pull through this," friend, Debbi Hammond said.
It is difficult for friends like Debbi Hammond, and Hendry County Sheriff Stephen Whidden to talk about former Hendry County Sheriff Tommy Vaughan and his wife Dawn's motorcycle crash last Tuesday in Hendry County.
"When I found about the crash, I was devastated. They love their community of LaBelle. They love the people in it, they have been here forever and they will do anything for anyone," Sheriff Whidden said.
Vaughan served as sheriff from 1993 to 1997. Their friends said the couple is compassionate, caring and loving and remember the Vietnam War veteran's passion for riding motorcycles.
"Tommy always rode his motorcycle and rode it everywhere. He was always like come on up and bring those motorcycles," Hammond said.
Two Peas Café in LaBelle owner, Debbie Klemmer, said she's been friends with the couple for years.
"He had a home in Maggie Valley, North Carolina like five thousand feet above sea level on the mountain. It's like the sheriff said anytime you went over, they would welcome you with open arms," Klemmer said.
Since the crash, the couple has had multiple surgeries and friends said there is still a long road to recovery.
"I just want to tell them I love them. I am trusting and I am believing that they are coming out of the hospital just fine," friend Vicki Reynolds said.
"We will pray for them and hopefully they will be okay again one day," friend Sharon Miller said.
"They are going to pull through this. It's been almost a week now and they are still with us," Hammond said.
