Benji Bash: A proud, tough Marine survives

Tom KingFarragut

It was 57 days ago when Lance Corporal Benji Bash went airborne off of his Yamaha R1 Super Star motorcycle on a dark rural road near Camp Lejeune. He landed on his backside, 406 feet from a pothole he hit, shattering his pelvis, opening up two large wounds on his buttocks and crushing parts of his lower intestines. Today, he is back in the operating room for his 21st surgery.

A U.S. Marine, Bash ended up at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, North Carolina, Level 1 Trauma Center. He was unconscious for a week as doctors worked to save his life. It’s been eight weeks, and he remains in an acute care unit, unable to stand and bear his own weight and is just now able to spend time in a wheelchair. And his recovery has just begun.

Benji Bash and his mother, Denise, on one of his days in a wheelchair

Every week the Rotary Club of Farragut receives an update on his progress, prays for the family and keeps them in our thoughts. He is the son of Denise and Alex Bash, also a Marine, and big brother to Chloe, 14. Denise is a Rotarian, member of the Farragut club who serves on the board of directors. Benji is a 2019 graduate of Grace Christian Academy, and their fellow Grace Baptist Church members know all about this story. She regularly posts updates on Facebook.

For Denise, this is how it all started, in her words: “Wednesday morning (March 9) our world changed a bit. It was just before 9 a.m., I was pulling into the driveway from the gym, getting ready to join a conference call. A call came in with a caller ID that said Marine Corps Base Quantico. On the other end, a very stern-sounding gentleman asked if I had spoken to my son today. I explained that he did not have to be on duty until 2 p.m., so we usually do not talk until around lunch. He proceeded to read an accident report and say that the next of kin should be at Benji’s bedside. No other information was available.”

By 6 p.m., Denise and the family were there, and they’ve have been there ever since, save for a day or two here and there. When she’s not there, Alex and Chloe are. Denise works for the Lockwood Group in medical communications and strategy and has worked from the hospital and their hotel room. Alex is an oncology pharmaceutical representative and has been back and forth working and being with his son. It’s a seven-hour drive.

What’s next for Benji? He will be in the hospital for at least five to seven more weeks and faces at least six more surgeries, Denise says. After that he will be transferred to the Naval Hospital at Camp Lejeune for physical therapy, lasting an estimated 12 to 18 months, much of it in a pool.

There are some unexplained miracles here. First, the physical:

  • His helmet prevented any head injuries.
  • He had no broken bones other than the pelvis.
  • His major organs suffered no damage.
  • No facial injuries.

The second miracle is the man who happened upon the accident scene and Benji. He is a Marine working in law enforcement who also is an emergency medical technician.

“He knew how to stop the bleeding and immediately call for help. The doctors told us if Benji had not been found so quickly he would have bled to death there,” Denise said. They have not met this man yet but they will, she said.

The accident happened around 1 a.m. He and a few fellow Marines had been out riding, and he was alone and headed back to base. He was not drinking but told his parents he was speeding. “They do like to push the envelope, don’t they?” Denise said.

Benji Bash and the family — Alex,
sister Chloe and Denise

“His main trauma doctor came to see us Sunday and told us that he and others are amazed that he’s alive. He said in 20 years of practice he’s never seen anyone survive these severe pelvic and backside injuries, his buttocks deeply ripped open and his lower spine exposed, and the intestines.”

A team of orthopedic and trauma surgeons spent seven hours in his first surgery on March 9, saving his life to allow him to be where he is today. Denise says he will need plastic surgery on his “backside” and to cover the exposed spine. “They did X-rays this week on his pelvis. It is healing as expected. However, the bones of the pelvis close very slowly. It will take nearly a year for them to heal,” Denise added. “He will walk again and run again we believe.”

Benji has endured nights of screaming nerve pain from his pelvis into his right foot. Those were the hardest times. “He’s screaming in pain but there’s not much I could do for him,” she said. “His pain is now staying fairly well controlled. The foot is much better but still causes problems.” He’s cleared to spend two hours a day in the wheelchair but can only endure it for 45 minutes.

Benji plans to fulfill his five years as a Marine. Once he moves to the Naval Hospital, he will be a member of the Wounded Warrior Platoon and live in their barracks. The Marines will furnish Denise and family on-base housing, and they plan to be there through his rehabilitation.

Let’s hear what the patient has to say. “Sometimes it has been rough. The nerve pain in my right foot got the best of me to the point of crying and screaming. And pain meds do not affect nerve pain. But I’m here and going to make the best of it. I have been working to beat their timelines for my recovery and there’s not a chance I will give up. At first, I said ‘Why me?’ But then I’d rather it be me than someone else.”

This was his second motorcycle and his last. “Mom said she’d come after me with a baseball bat if she sees me near a motorcycle,” he said.

“It’s hard to put into words how I feel. It’s been tough, but there have been good and bad times to it. It has brought us all closer together as a family,” she said. “It has made us appreciate things more. Chloe even told me this has made her realize that life can be short.”

The walls of his room are filled with hundreds of cards, letters and notes from Knoxville and around the country, even from overseas. Marines and their moms have written, including moms whose sons have died in motorcycle accidents. Denise and Alex plan to address the issue of Marines dying in motorcycle accidents. But that’s to come. Benji is the focus now.

“One day at a time – putting one foot in front of the other,” Denise says. “Taking care of Benji. That’s all we can do and trust in our God. His hands are all over this and us.”

Tom King has served at newspapers in Georgia, Tennessee, Texas and California and was the editor of two newspapers. Suggest future stories at tking535@gmail.com or call him at 865-659-3562.

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