Henderson teen fights for life after wreck

Tiffani Jobe, 17, was a passenger in a truck driven by Elizabeth Stewart, 16, on N.C. Highway 39 at Epsom Rocky Ford Road. State troopers said that Stewart made a left turn in front of an oncoming truck, causing a nearly head-on collision.

Stewart, of Warrenton, and her 12-year-old brother were treated at Maria Parham Medical Center in Henderson. The driver of the other truck, Stephan Brigandi, 45, of Louisburg, was listed in good condition at WakeMed Sunday.

Jobe was listed in critical condition at WakeMed as she struggled to recover from blood loss, two broken legs, a broken pelvis and internal organ damage.

Jobe's guardian, Lakeeta Vaughn, said she could think of only one reason why her step-granddaughter is still here after a horrific wreck.

"God had his hands on all of them," she said.

Vaughn said that Jobe has already struggled to rise above a hard life. Her mother abandoned her when she was three years old, and her grandfather and step-grandmother have raised her ever since.

"Tiffani is like my own child," Vaughn said. "We have nine children. She is number 10 we have raised."

A junior at Southern Vance High School, Jobe is also the mother of 2-year-old Makayla.

"I always told her to hold her head up high. Let the past be the past, and go for the future," Vaughn said.

She expressed faith that her granddaughter will recover, although she'll need rods in both legs and will spend two to three months in a wheelchair.

Vaughn said that her family holds no ill will against Stewart, whom troopers have charged with failure to yield the right of way.

"Let her know that we love her," Vaughn said. "No hard feelings. Accidents happen."