Ankit Bhuta came to the U.S. from Mumbai, India to attend flight school. After passing his courses, he needed hours on his flight log, a quest that took him to Stockton, California. On September 7, 2015, Ankit was riding on the back of a motorcycle being driven by one of his classmates. The classmate decided to race a Porsche 911 on a two-lane road. As their speed increased to 100 miles-per-hour, Ankit felt his helmet slide toward the top of his head. As he reached up to secure the helmet, he slipped off the back of the motorcycle, landing heavily on his left side. The next thing Ankit knew, he was in a helicopter being flown to UC Davis Medical Center.
In Mumbai, Tushar and Nita Bhuta applied for emergency visas so that they could come to America to be with their son. When they arrived in Sacramento on September 11, they found their son wrapped in bandages, his left arm shattered with multiple breaks, his left leg with a metal plate in it, and his skin abraded so badly that he needed skin grafts. Ankit stopped breathing on one occasion and was resuscitated.
On October 30, Ankit was discharged from the hospital and came to stay with his parents at Kiwanis Family House. “It is like a second home to us,” says Tushar. “God has been kind enough to provide us with such a nice place to stay. Staying near the hospital with transportation available has been a blessing. We do not have a car here and I can’t imagine where else we would have gone.” Nita said, “The staff and other guests have been so kind. They showed me how to use the stove and laundry facilities and being able to move from two beds to three beds when Ankit arrived has been great.” Ankit said, “Being so close to my therapy, and being able to ride the shuttle has been very helpful to me. This kind of transportation is not available for handicapped in India.”
