Although she was airlifted to Pittsburgh with shattered ribs, partially collapsed lungs, a crushed clavicle and internal bleeding after a T-bone crash Wednesday on Route 8 in Penn Township, the first thing Jenny Martin mentioned through her significant pain was others.

“The first thing she said when talking to us about (the crash) was, 'I'm praising the Lord that it was us and not a school bus full of children, because it was the time of morning when kids were going to school,” said her sister, Holly Mead. “That's her heart.”

Mead said Jenny, 28, and her husband, Zachary Martin, 29, were on their way to work as usual Wednesday morning, when Zachary pulled out from West Airport Road to cross Route 8, so he could drop Jenny at her job as a music teacher at Penn Christian Academy on Airport Road.

A Cadillac driven by Charles Williams, 59, of Butler was traveling south on Route 8 and slammed into the passenger side of the minivan driven by Zachary Martin.

Police: Driver admitted using opioids

Police said Williams admitted to using opioids before the crash.

Crash reconstruction specialists are working to determine which color the traffic lights were at the time of the crash and whether Williams was speeding.

“They landed on the driver's side of the car, so Jenny took the brunt of the crash, and Zach took the brunt of the road,” Mead said. “Jenny said she was pinned on top of Zach when they came to rest.”

Mead said Zachary kept asking Jenny to get off him, but she was unable to because she also was badly injured and having difficulty breathing.

“They both thought they were going to die,” she said.

Injuries are severe

Mead said her sister's ribs are broken in so many places that doctors stopped counting at 10 breaks.

“They broke off from the spine and shattered,” Mead said.

One rib punctured a lung and doctors inserted chest tubes into both of Jenny's sides, and continue to try to determine where her internal bleeding is coming from.

“She's awake and alert and off the ventilator,” Mead said Friday morning, “but there's no guarantee she's not going to have to go back in for more surgery.”

As for Zachary, Mead said he has seven broken bones in his neck. Doctors stabilized four vertebrae with pins and rods.

While he is moving and not paralyzed, doctors discovered during surgery severe damage to a nerve that could affect dexterity in both hands.

Zachary works at MSA in Cranberry Township.

“The sad thing is he works with his hands,” Mead said. “The doctors said it's possible that the body could regenerate that nerve on its own, but it is likely he'll have dexterity issues all his life.”

She said he also suffered massive injuries to both arms and shoulders, which Mead said was obvious to Zachary and everyone else at the crash scene.

“(Doctors) are not even looking into that until the neck issue is done,” Mead said.

She said while the couple was flown to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, Zachary was transported to UPMC Montefiore Hospital for the delicate neck surgery.

When the surgery was complete, he begged medical personnel to return him to Presbyterian, so he could be in the intensive care unit with his wife of five years.

“They are across the hall from each other,” said Mead, who drives her octogenarian parents to Presbyterian and back to Butler every day so they can visit the couple.

'Quite a shock'

“It's been quite a shock to all of us,” Mead said.

Zachary had additional surgery on Friday to repair a badly damaged artery in his neck.

“Fortunately, neither of them seemed to have sustained any significant head injuries beyond concussions,” Mead said.

Because it is expected that the couple, who have no children, will be off work and focusing on recovery for the next several months, Mead and her sisters, Beth Ackleson and Amy Parker, have set up a fundraiser on GoFundMe.com

As of Friday evening, $14,090 has been raised for the couple.

Craig Carnahan, administrator at Penn Christian Academy, said Jenny has worked at the private elementary school for five years.

“Jenny is one of the kindest, most loving individuals you could hope for in a music teacher,” Carnahan said. “The kids absolutely love her because she has a joy about life.”

He said staff members on Wednesday morning reported to him that they had passed a bad crash on Route 8 on their way to work, and one of the vehicles involved looked like Jenny's.

When Jenny uncharacteristically didn't show up for work, Carnahan called her sister and was told the news.

“We are praising the Lord that she and her husband are alive to recover,” Carnahan said. “Our entire school community is supporting them in prayer and rallying behind them and knowing the Lord is going to bring them through this.”

Donations sought

Mead said her family and Jenny and Zachary's many friends continue to support them physically and emotionally, but donations from the community would help them financially until they are able to work again.

To donate, go to www.gofundme.com and search “Jenny and Zach Martin.”

Mead and her sisters hope to raise $20,000 for the couple.

Williams and his passenger, Kim Werner, 53, of Allison Park, Allegheny County, were airlifted to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh.

AGH officials said they were not listed as patients at the hospital on Friday.

Williams' and Werner's conditions were not available as of Friday afternoon. It was unclear if charges have been filed against Williams.