‘Kid at heart': Street hockey community rallies around coach injured in crash
James Hotchner has played and coached street hockey in a Huntersville Park for years.
Hotchner has coached and played in the Charlotte Street Hockey League for some time, with much of the league's proceeds going to charity. Most recently, money raised went to help with ovarian cancer research.
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'He's the first person to raise his hand for literally anything we're doing,' Bobby Arkus with the CSHL said. 'If it's a volunteer event, James is the one raising his hand.'
But a week ago, Hotchner was in an accident. And many of his friends said he is lucky to be alive.
He was involved in a crash with a tractor-trailer truck on Interstate 77 near exit 23. Arkus said Hotchner was flown to the hospital in Charlotte. But he doesn't remember much of what happened.
'He remembers seeing a truck coming up behind him saying, 'Oh, that's not going to be able to stop,' and from that point it wasn't able to stop and that's pretty much that last of it,' Arkus said.
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Hotchner survived the crash, but he is now in the hospital with 13 broken ribs, a fracture in his back and a blood clot in his neck.
But he is determined and ready to play again.
'He's joking around a little bit but he's somebody that's extremely resilient,' Arkis said. 'He's one of the older guys in the league and you wouldn't know it based on seeing him play, based on how he acts, based on the kid at heart that he is.'
Friends said that Hotchner hopes to leave the hospital this week.
There is no timetable when he will be able to join the game again, but Arkus said Hotchner will find a way to contribute no matter what.
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