'Back on my path': Boynton Beach pastor struck in hit-and-run striding toward recovery

DELRAY BEACH — In the cold fluorescent light of a hospital room, Bishop Bernard Wright welled up with tears as he described a moment of triumph. After weeks of trying, he was finally able to put on his own socks again. His daughter Jannerral stood next to him, passionately declaring, “Amen!”

A hit-and-run crash had left the 70-year-old pastor bleeding and sprawled on the pavement of Federal Highway, praying and reciting Bible verses, on the evening of Dec. 26. Right after the crash, he was immobile and dependent on a respirator to breathe. Although he avoided any brain damage or internal bleeding, doctors wondered if he would survive the injuries to both his legs and his right arm.

Now they expect him to make a full recovery. Delray Medical Center officials discharged him Friday.

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Wright said at the hospital Feb. 6 that the crash was the wake-up call he needed in life. When he was thrust in the air from the impact of the hit, all he thought was that if he were to live, he would spend the rest of his life ministering.

“This has given me a whole different perspective on life and on what matters and what doesn’t,” Wright said. “I was operating more in the flesh than in the spirit, and if this is what it has taken, I just say, ‘Thank you, Lord.’ I’m back on my path and calling.”

Boynton Beach police have found the car but have made no arrests.

Boynton Beach police have impounded the white Chevrolet Camaro that struck Wright as he led a vigil to mark the one-year anniversary of the death of Stanley Davis III, a 13-year-old boy who died when his dirt bike crashed along Federal Highway as a police officer chased him.

Officers still are attempting to locate the car's driver, and the case remains under investigation, said Officer Holly Picciano, spokesperson for the Boynton Beach Police.

Wright leads RealTalk Radio, a nonprofit 24/7 gospel radio station. He said he left his main goal of full-time ministry for the political arena when he ran for three city positions, including mayor last spring, a race won by current Mayor Ty Penserga. Now he plans to return to full-time ministry work.

“Sometimes these things are necessary because it pushes you back on the path that you were designed to go on,” Jannerral Wright said.

Once he could speak, Wright began sharing his Christian faith within the walls of the hospital. His doctor arranged for him to have a space to talk with other patients who would be interested, and he was eager to visit other patients in their rooms.

Wright’s faith has allowed him to focus on something else other than pain and discomfort, said his occupational therapist, John Mandile. It has given him a fervor for life that made him a star patient.

Wright "is phenomenal,” Mandile said. “Every day, he works more. He never says no. He tries everything and his mobility has increased tenfold. Now he is using a walker and it’s only going to get better from there.”

Mandile said that even as he worked to heal himself, Wright prioritized every person who walked into his room, ministering to them whenever he could and following up on how they were doing.

“It’s funny. … He is worried about other people, even though he is going through all this,” Mandile said. “He ministers all day and it keeps him going. I never knew how much went into being a pastor. It’s literally 24/7.”

Wright says the driver who injured him is 'forgiven by me.'

When asked what he shared with others in the hospital when he ministers, Wright answered with one word: “Love.”

Wright said he had conversations with other patients and hospital workers about biblical, church and world history and how they all coincide, explaining the Protestant Reformation and how different denominations of Christianity came to be.

“I’m a social-justice activist and a community activist, but primarily, I’m a minister of the Gospel,” Wright said. “I just thank God for how he has led and guided my life. God gave me back my life, so now I give him back my life.”

Wright said he has found forgiveness in his heart for the person who hit him.

“It’s up in the air whether my hit was on purpose or accident,” Wright said. “Either way, they are forgiven by me. I don’t have any hard feelings. I’m at peace to just be here. I would have been buried three or four weeks ago.”

His family is raising funds online to help pay for Wright's medical bills. He said he is experiencing soreness as he works to regain his strength, but his blood work is stable and he is no longer in pain.

“By the grace of God, I am here today," Wright said.

Maya Washburn is a reporter for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida network. Reach her at mwashburn@gannett.com Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Pastor strides toward recovery after December hit-and-run crash