When UTM Agriculture Communications senior Mayce Alloway, also known on campus as Mayce Thompson, recently faced second and third-degree-burns on over 35 percent of her body, she saw it as a challenge to overcome, not an overwhelming tragedy.
“I relate everything that I am to my religion and my Maker. I think he blessed me with immediate coping skills,” Alloway said.
Alloway, who was born in Dyersburg, Tenn., is no stranger to hardship. Growing up she lived with her mother who suffered from mental issues and her father who suffered from epilepsy and was both mentally and physically abusive. Throughout her childhood the family had to move as many as three times a year in order for her father to find work because of his medical condition.
At 15 she married and dropped out of high school to escape her parent’s abusive home. At 17 Alloway sought refuge for herself and her baby at a women’s shelter, after her husband kicked her in the face while she was holding their daughter.
She later married and was blessed with two more daughters. Her six-year marriage ended when her husband turned to heroin and violently threw her through a glass door.
In September 1994 Alloway took her GED and scored the sixth highest in the state that year.
Alloway became engaged in 2006 and 24 hours later her fiancé was killed in an accident. At this point she sank into a depressive state and secluded herself from the world. While in seclusion she reached a turning point in her life and a television commercial inspired her to join the Army National Guard.
Alloway began serving six active years in the military in April 2006, including a year in Kuwait and a year in Iraq. At present she holds the rank of E5 and has one year left to serve in the reserves.
While in the military Alloway married again. The marriage was dissolved by mutual agreement. The couple had only managed to spend a combined total of four months together during their two-year marriage, because they were both in the military.
Alloway tried marriage one more time and even though it ended badly, she still retains hope.
“I believe that the perfect man is out there waiting for me, but I’m not looking for him anymore. I’m just going to wait for the Lord to bring me what He wants me to have,” Alloway said.
This past summer has also been eventful for Alloway. On May 11 the VA Hospital in Memphis, after running several tests, determined that Alloway had a heart attack. She had experienced sharp pains in her left jaw that radiated down the left side of her neck, left shoulder and arm so intensely she could hardly move.
Alloway went to her doctor’s office on July 15 because she was itching and broken out with a rash. In less than 10 minutes of her arrival her throat began to swell and she went into anaphylactic shock. She was given emergency treatment and transported to Volunteer General Hospital. After she had been in a room for several hours she went into anaphylactic shock a second time and had to be transferred to ICU. At this point the doctors have no idea what is causing her allergic reactions. She has an appointment to see an allergist at the VA Hospital Sept. 15.
On Aug. 2 Alloway was cutting down and burning brush in the backyard of a home that is currently unoccupied in Greenfield, Tenn. She had the fire going when it started sprinkling and because she was afraid that the fire was going to go out, she put some gas that she had from mowing into a glass and went towards the fire. She was considering throwing the gas on the fire, when she realized the fire had caught enough that it was not going to go out. As she was turning around to walk away from the fire, an ember popped off of a piece of wood and actually landed in the glass of gas she was holding in her hand. The gas exploded in her hand and her face. As a natural reaction she tried to toss the glass away. This caused the gas to then go all over her body, which then immediately caught fire.
“So, do teach your kids to stop, drop and roll, because that’s the first thing that came to mind. It was kind of like a movie in my head. I immediately fell to the ground and started rolling. I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I am on fire!’ I could see it like a movie. I could see the grass catching on fire behind me as I was rolling and I could see my hair burning,” Alloway said.
After rolling on the ground, she jumped up and looked down at her right arm and hand; they no longer were covered with skin. At that point she knew that she was hurt badly, but didn’t realize at that time that her legs had also sustained third-degree-burns. She knew her face was burned but just hoped it didn’t look as bad as her arm and hand. She ran in search of water to cool her burning body. She found a working water hydrant behind a neighbor’s house and stood with the water pouring over her to get some relief.
Before the fire occurred, Alloway had been scheduled to pick up her 2½-year-old grandson. With that in mind, after running water over her body she returned to her car and drove herself to Martin, where her grandson was. Her daughter called an ambulance for her. When it arrived, the medical personnel could not believe that Alloway had even survived such a fire, much less driven herself from Greenfield to Martin.
A neighbor later told her daughter that when the gas ignited the windows in his house rattled, and he at first thought a gas line had burst.
Alloway was transported to the Vanderbilt Burn Center in Nashville where she received preliminary treatment for her burns. She was released from the hospital and was unable to receive the recommended skin graph surgery and therapy because the VA refused to pay for further treatment and medical supplies.
Alloway, who hopes to graduate Spring 2014, plans to continue her schooling and fulfill her duties as NTSA president for the Fall 2013 semester even if she has to walk around campus like a mummy.
“So, when you guys get back to campus this semester and you see the chick running around in the mummy suit, that’s me. When you see me, remember that whatever hardships you endure, not just in college but afterwards, don’t let anything stop you from what you want to do, because life is not getting any shorter. Get out there, get your degree, get your career started and be somebody,” Alloway said.
A burn fund has been set up for Alloway to help with medical expenses. Anyone wishing to donate may do so on Facebook at “MAYCE Mayce Rose Blackley-Alloway Burn Fund.”
I can’t believe it has already been over a year since my accident.I am doing very well btw!!
What an inspirational story. The fact that she is still loyal to her faith through all her hardships is refreshing too. I am also an “adult student” at UTM who has come from being a teenage mom and high school drop-out only to realize what life-experiences I missed out on by not pursuing my education sooner. Thank you for sharing your story Macey, it is an inspiration to us all! You are proof that students like us can succeed; we are never too old to follow our dreams, to realize that we have it within us to turn our lives around and become something that makes us happy, productive and proud. UTM gave that opportunity back to me, and I can only hope that it’s stories such as this that will motivate others to reach their goals as well.
Best Wishes Macey!
Anecia, What you stated is my very hope….to inspire others to get busy with life now or life will pass you by. So happy to hear you are now getting your higher education. Tell your story too and maybe folks like us can make the college drop out rate lower. In the Army,one of the things I would hear is, “Don’t cheat yourself”. I can only imagine the things I could have done if I started earlier. I’m the President of the Non-Traditional Student Association and we would love to have you be a part of it. You or anyone else that would like for me to contact them when we get ready to have our first meeting please feel free to put a shout out on our Non-Traditional Student FB page. Congratulations on the success you are going to have!!