NEW CARLISLE, Ind. – An Indiana teenager was seriously injured in a May 8 school bus collision.

Classmates of Lucas Bradshaw describe him as having a heart for working on his family farm outside New Carlisle in the northern part of the state.

He is on the junior varsity baseball team, which was making the one-hour drive to Hobart in two minibuses for a game when the collision, also involving a box truck and tractor trailer, happened less than 10 miles from the school.

Also badly hurt was Rich Shail, a volunteer coach who remained at the same hospital with a fractured vertebrae in his back, broken ribs and other injuries.

Six other students, along with one other coach, were hurt but they’re now recovering at home.

“All you can do is pray, really. Pray and hope,” said Emma Deutscher, who like Bradshaw is a sophomore at New Prairie High School and student in the school’s FFA chapter.

Her twin sister, Chloe, who’s also in FFA, described Bradshaw as being a hard worker in the classroom. He likes to talk about his activities on his family farm.

“Ever since we were younger, I just remember him always talking about farming.  That’s his passion,” she said.

Bradshaw, a 4-H member who shows livestock at the St. Joseph County Fair, was the secretary this year of the school’s FFA chapter.

He was among the members of an FFA small engines team at the school that placed seventh out of 34 teams in a recent state competition.

His FFA instructor, Madison Coates, said Bradshaw is involved in other FFA projects at the school like gardening, but he seems to have a real knack for small engines and what it takes to make them run properly.

“It takes time. Patience. He has all of those qualities,” she said.

Nearly a week after the crash, Bradshaw remained in the intensive care at Memorial Hospital in South Bend, where he was airlifted from where the accident occurred at U.S. 20 and Fail Road.

The day after the crash, several hundred people turned out for a candlelight prayer vigil at the baseball field of the high school.

A three-piece church band played gospel songs between prayer sessions led by Pastor Don Bayne, of New Carlisle Wesleyan Church, and Pastor Nick Bello, of Journey Church outside Rolling Prairie.

Principal Justin Heinold told the crowd his attitude is one of hope. 

When reached, the boy’s family chose not to comment.

The Bradshaw family is involved with Golden Acres Farm, which raises show pigs, and Zahl’s Elevator and Feed Mill.

The latest social media posts from loved ones indicate Bradshaw remained in critical condition with positive signs, though, in his bid to recover from a head injury.

Rich Shail has been out of bed with help from a walker and is wearing a brace from his neck to his hips to stabilize a fractured vertebrae in his back, according to his wife, Nancy.

Nancy Shail said a decision on surgery to help repair the fracture will not be made until the brace is removed in six to eight weeks.

She said he also suffered broken ribs along with cuts and lacerations over much of his body.

“It’s quite awful to see because then you realize how badly you were beaten around,” she said.

Shail said the bus carrying her husband and Bradshaw was stopped at a traffic light behind the other bus when struck in the rear by the box truck.

Shawn Akison, 41, of Romeoville, Ill., was being held in the La Porte County Jail on $15,000 bond for Level 5 felony criminal recklessness.

Police said he caused the collision in a box truck minutes after St. Joseph County Police terminated a pursuit of his vehicle at the La Porte County line.

Akison refused to stop when an officer tried pulling him over for driving recklessly, police said.

He was given a blood test, which is standard procedure in any serious injury accident to determine impairment.

The results of the test and further details about the crash were not being released due to the ongoing investigation, said La Porte County Police Capt. Derek Allen.

According to court records, Akison has a Level 6 felony charge of possession of a narcotic drug from January still undecided in Lake County, Ind.