By TONY GUERRERO
Hays Post
Doctors said Chase Kear would not survive his catastrophic head injury. Today, what doctor's called a miraculous recovery is part of the Catholic Church’s investigation into the canonization of a new saint.
During his sophomore year at Hutchinson Community College, a pole vault attempt sent Chase soaring beyond the landing pit from about 14 feet in the air.
"My legs hit the back edge of the pit, and that whiplashed my head into the ground. I fractured my skull from ear to ear across the front," Chase said. "The next day, they removed portions of my skull to allow my brain to swell, parts that were already essentially dead."
Chase was born in Hays and attended St. Joseph’s Catholic School, now Holy Family Elementary, before his family relocated to Colwich for better opportunities. His father worked at the K-State Ag Research Center, and his mother taught at St. Mary Catholic School in Ellis.
Chase’s father, Paul Kear, competed in pole vault for a season at Fort Hays State University. When Chase began running track in seventh grade, he also chose to follow in his father’s footsteps and take up pole vaulting himself.
"I started when I was about 12 years old, and I actually took third at state in my senior year of high school," he said.
Chase graduated from Andale High School in 2007 and, after earning a scholarship, enrolled at Hutchinson Community College to study firefighting.
On Oct. 2, 2008, early into his second year of college at age 19, Chase’s life changed forever.
"I remember standing on the runway, bringing all my power and energy down the runway. I jumped off the ground, and the pole just slipped like butter," he said.
Chase described it as the pole overflexing, causing it to react oddly and propel him outward while he was more than a dozen feet in the air.
"I remember the thought going through my head, this could be really good or really bad. I saw the back edge of the pit coming, and I had a split second to determine how much space I had. 'Am I even going to land on the mat?'" he said. "I turned to land on my back, proper form, and then I hit my head. I saw a white flash."
In his final moments of consciousness before blacking out, Chase said he reached up to his head and felt his fractured skull shift.
A helicopter landed on the football field and airlifted him to Via Christi St. Francis Hospital in Wichita. The next day, surgeons removed a third of his skull and about 10% of his frontal lobe.
Chase’s family began praying immediately after the accident. By the next morning, after doctors told them he was not expected to survive, they specifically began praying for the intercession of Fr. Emil Kapaun.
"That was just something our parish did," Paula Kear, Chase's mother, said. "We prayed before Mass for the sick to Fr. Kapaun."
Kapaun was a Roman Catholic priest and U.S. Army chaplain born April 20, 1916 — Holy Thursday — in Pilsen. He risked his life during the Korean War to rescue wounded soldiers and administer the sacraments on the battlefield.
Kapaun died in 1951 after being taken prisoner, where his fellow prisoners of war later credited him with saving countless lives through his leadership and example.
Before long, Chase began improving, surprising medical professionals and leaving them speechless at how he was surviving such a life-threatening injury.
"Two non-Catholic doctors, my surgeon being one of them, used the word miraculous," Chase said. "When two of the doctors who cared for me said they can't explain it, it was a miracle. That's really all I need to know."
After 19 days in the hospital, Chase entered rehabilitation, weakened but determined to recover the abilities he had lost in the accident.
"I couldn't walk... all the things we take for granted, simple things like picking up a fork, putting a bite in your mouth, and how to swallow. I had to relearn everything," he said.
After having a plate placed in his skull in December 2008, he returned to classes online in January 2009, just three months after his near-death experience, before going back to Hutchinson Community College in person the following school year.
A year and a half after his injury, Chase said he felt he had unfinished business in pole vaulting. He returned to the same spot where his life had changed forever and attempted another vault, only this time successfully completing it.
"I had to get back on the horse to prove to myself that I wasn't less the man I was before the injury. I wasn't letting anything hold me back, especially fear," Chase said.
Chase changed his major and ultimately earned an Associate of Arts degree in 2014 before transferring to FHSU that same year. He went on to receive his bachelor’s degree in communication studies with an emphasis in public relations in May 2018.
Before the accident, Chase said faith was part of his life, but afterward it became central to who he is. He added that he attended the Comeau Catholic Campus Center while at FHSU.
"Call it a renewal of spirit. My faith life is very much stronger," he said.
Chase did not return to pole vaulting during the remainder of his school years, but he did coach the sport for one season at Thomas More Prep-Marian while he was a student.
After graduating from FHSU in 2018, he worked at Spirit AeroSystems and later earned a degree in structural aircraft assembly from Wichita Area Technical College, now Wichita State University Tech.
"In summary, when it comes to schooling, I have three collegiate degrees, and I'm missing 10% of my brain. All three degrees were achieved post-injury," Chase said.
On Oct. 2, 2021, 13 years after his near-fatal accident, Chase began a new chapter when he married his wife. The couple later welcomed three sons and resides in Colwich.
However, that same week, after 70 years away, Kapaun finally returned home to Kansas.
When the Korean War began in 1950, Kapaun was deployed to the battlefield, risking his life to help soldiers and bury the dead, all while under the threat of gunfire.
That same year, he chose to remain with wounded soldiers rather than retreat. Captured by Chinese forces, Kapaun was marched to a North Korean prison camp, where he became the spiritual and physical support for fellow prisoners.
In 1951, weakened by pneumonia and a blood clot, he was taken to the camp's "Death House," where he died at age 35. His fellow prisoners credited him with saving countless lives through his leadership and example.
Kapaun was named a “Servant of God,” the first step towards canonization, by the church in 1993. His remains were returned to Kansas in September 2021 and were laid to rest inside the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Wichita, three days before Cahse's wedding.
"It was something I always hoped that I'd see, but I didn't know that I ever would. It seemed like such a long shot that he would ever come home," Chase said.
The next step is beatification, when he would be declared “Blessed,” which requires confirmation of a miracle attributed to his intercession. A second verified miracle would then be needed for canonization, after which the pope could formally declare him a saint.
"That'd be a great day," Chase said regarding Kaupan potentially being canonized. "It'd be amazing and indescribable. I don't know how to put it into words."
The Diocese of Wichita is currently providing information to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints regarding two alleged miracles, one of which involves Chase.
While Chase was in rehab, Father John Hotze of Wichita learned of his unexplained recovery and began investigating the case before later submitting it to the dicastery.
Chase had little familiarity with Kapaun before his accident, but was first introduced to him when Kapaun’s brother, Eugene Kapaun, spoke to his eighth-grade religion class.
After the accident, Chase began looking deeper into the life of the man his parish and family were praying to for his intercession.
When surgeons removed portions of Chase’s brain, they also removed areas typically associated with the ability to draw. Below is a picture Chase completed in 57 minutes.
"It's kind of a visual representation of the miracle," Chase said.
Chase said his family has not received any recent updates on the investigation into his case. The official cause for the Sainthood of Kapaun can be followed on Facebook.
According to its website, you can help with the canonization of Kapaun through prayer and spreading his story.
For anyone facing a life-altering challenge like his, Chase offered this advice: “Keep your faith and keep moving forward, even when you're falling 10 steps back, keep moving forward.”