We were driving home from church on a Saturday night in April 2013, down a dark, wooded section of state highway – and a deer ran out of the woods right in front of us!

Dan slammed on the brakes (note: anti-lock systems DO work), but it wasn't enough – we hit it hard, crumpling up the left front of our Honda Odyssey van.

This is the only photo we got of the damage, with Gaye's iPhone, while waiting for the tow truck the night it happened. Ouch!

The van was totaled (and the deer died instantly), but the whole thing turned into another God story:

• we weren't hurt
  
  
• it was very pleasant weather for being stuck by the side of the road
  
  
• we had TWO couples from church who not only stopped to check on us, they stayed with us until the police were done and the tow truck was there! (Thanks, Daniel and Faith and Ryan and Catherine!)
  
  
• Our family was able to get by with 2 cars (vs 3) for a week while we shopped

And, finally, our "new" van is a 2004 Pontiac Montana with only 101,000 miles on it! We had a 1999 Montana once (before the Honda Odyssey), and Gaye loved it...it's her favorite style of minivan. (That one, by the way, made it to 225,000 miles before it died).

Our "new" one is the last year they made that same body style – and when Gaye first drove it, she said, "it fits like a glove!" Yay, God!

The new "baby," in our driveway.