Luke Hartrum, 10, zips up the ramp in his motorized wheelchair after he disembarks from the school bus. He's wearing a huge grin as his mom, Lori Hartrum welcomes him home from L.B. Morris Elementary School where he is a fifth grader.

"Here's my handsome boy," she croons."I love you," he says in sign language."He's my miracle," his mother says as she bends down to kiss his cheek.He's a miracle because Luke died three times on June 6, 2007.Lori, a mother of five, becomes emotional as she recalls that horrible day.Luke and his twin brother, Logan, were 6 years old on the day they went with their sister, Mackenzie, 10, brother Brandon, 15 and Brandon's friend, Vance Lovell, 15, to a park near their Northampton home. They had to cross Weaversville Road to get to the park.The two older boys made it across first and the twins and Mackenzie were just starting to cross when Luke was struck by a car. He was thrown 30 feet and landed face down. His brother Brandon was the first to reach him. He turned Luke over. He was dead.A paramedic lived nearby and was the first on the scene. He resuscitated Luke. When the ambulance came, he died a second time but was resuscitated again. He was transported to Lehigh Valley and was pronounced DOA. He was brought back to life a third time.He was a broken little boy. His brain was so traumatized, they removed a portion of his skull to alleviate pressure from the swollen tissue. He suffered a broken jaw and two broken legs. In a coma and on life-support, the family was told he was brain-dead. It was suggested that the plug be pulled.His father and grandmother urged Lori to remove him from life-support."I couldn't. I felt God was telling me not to. I felt if he died three times and was brought back, God had some other purpose for him," she says.In July, he was admitted to Children's Specialized Hospital in Mountainside, N.J. where he received physical, occupational and cognitive therapies on a daily basis.After about seven weeks, Luke began over-breathing on the ventilator and he was taken off it, but remained in a vegetative state. His eyes were open but no brain activity showed."I think his little brain was just resting," says Lori.That December, the family's insurance no longer covered his stay because there were no changes. Lori brought Luke home. A former medic in the U.S. Army, Lori continued giving Luke physical therapy at home. She talked to him and read to him, just like he was a normal little boy.One day she found something other than a blank stare in Luke's eyes. He began to "wake up." He learned to say "Mama" and "Amen." He was readmitted to Children's Specialized Hospital and began remembering things and learning. Soon he could point to pictures of his siblings. He responded to opening his mouth to be fed. After three months, he returned home.He learned to get about in his motorized wheelchair that weighs 250 pounds. Thanks to a donated van converted to accommodate the chair, Lori was able to take him to his therapy sessions and family outings, especially to church, which Luke just loves.Lori saw an ad for Dr. Kimberly Kuchinski, a pediatric physiatrist at Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Hospital Pediatric Unit in Bethlehem. She made an appointment. Dr. Kuchinski felt they could help Luke maximize his potential by improving his strength, mobility and communication skills.Lori, Dr. Kuchinski and Good Shepherd staff fought hard with Luke's insurance company to get him admitted. Finally, in December of 2009, they won.Lori says the changes in Luke were dramatic.His speech blossomed, he learned to sit unsupported and he can now put weight on his legs.When she dreams about his future, Lori sees him someday being able to support himself and maybe living on his own, perhaps in a mother-in-law apartment next to her."I could see him possibly being a minister," she says with a smile.But Luke's therapy sessions have come to a screeching halt.The year 2010 has seen one costly van repair after another with the final straw of the transmission going out in October. With no funds to repair it, the family is now dependent on the kindness of others to take them to the grocery store, school events and church. They did visit Lori's dying mother in November and spent a couple of hours with her father for Christmas, but they couldn't stay long because of Luke's inability to sit without the restraints of his chair. Those were the last two times that Luke has been able to go anywhere, except to school."And he hates missing church. He has a strong faith. When you ask him who he loves, he signs 'I love God.' To see him regress after all the work put into his progress, it breaks my heart," says Lori.Lori, a single mom on disability, has tried to find an agency to help but she says getting a transportation donation is nearly impossible. She finds it very hard to admit that she needs help and only through the urgings of family and friends is she now reaching out to the public."We're hoping for another miracle. When I see Luke not being able to go to physical therapy ... well, I can't do this on my own."The miracle she is hoping for is someone will hear about Luke and want to help him continue to move forward in his improvement and donate a van with a wheelchair lift so he can resume therapy.Luke is an inspiration to Lori and she believes he is an inspiration to others."He loves everybody, loves God and he knows the true meaning of life. I didn't know before what his purpose was or why God wanted him to live. But I know it now. Luke's purpose is to bring people back to faith and hope."Through this journey they have been on, Lori says she has also learned her purpose in life."It is to raise my children so they can fulfill their purposes in life."If you or you know someone who could provide a van for Luke, you can contact Sara Sadawski at (610) 248-2372. Or you can make a donation to the Luke Hartrum Transportation Fund at any PNC Bank branch in Carbon, Monroe and Northampton counties in Pennsylvania, or in Hunterdon and Warren counties in New Jersey. Or you can mail donations to: Luke Hartrum Fund, P.O. Box 1998, Albrightsville, PA 18210.