Michigan woman set to celebrate her first Mother's Day at home since emerging from 5-year coma

Dowagiac, Michigan — For Peggy Means, every Mother's Day had been just another day without her daughter, Jennifer Flewellen, who was critically injured in a 2017 car crash at the age 35. 

Flewellen, Means' only daughter, was in a coma with virtually no chance of ever coming out of it, doctors told her. And yet, Means refused to let them pull the plug, a decision she said she "never" questioned. 

"I just couldn't let her go," Means told CBS News.

One by one, Means' friends stopped visiting. Even her husband moved on with his life. Yet, almost every day, Means was there to comfort and care for Flewellen. Means always talked to her, as if Flewellen could understand, which of course, she couldn't. 

Until one day, in August 2022, she could.

It started with a laugh. Jennifer had been off life-support, but still in a coma, when her mother said something funny, and that was it. About a year later, Flewellen came home. 

Although she still cannot walk and struggles to speak, her mind is sharp, and her heart is filled with joy.

Jennifer especially loves visiting with her sons. 

As for Peggy, the mother who made these moments possible, this Mother's Day may be her best one ever, because even though she won't be getting flowers or candy, Jennifer can now muster those words that matter most, and deliver them as sincerely as they have ever been spoken.

"I love my mom," Jennifer said. 

In:
• Car Crash
• Michigan

Steve Hartman

Steve Hartman is a CBS News correspondent. He brings viewers moving stories from the unique people he meets in his weekly award-winning feature segment "On the Road."

Twitter