The evening of March 12, 2005, changed the lives of Mason Archer and his family forever. On the drive home from a restaurant, the Arkansas residents were struck head-on by a drunk driver. With the other driver traveling at over 100 miles per hour, the impact completely destroyed both vehicles and wounded all parties. Mason’s brother Braden, then aged 9, was the least injured with internal bleeding caused by his seat belt. Surgeons were able to fix his injuries laparoscopically and he spent a week in Arkansas Children’s Hospital. Linda Archer, wife and mother, suffered lacerations to the scalp and internal injuries and spent three weeks there. Charlie, husband, and father, was left with broken bones in one ankle and a completely crushed heel on the other foot. After several surgeries, he was still unable to walk for six months and unable to return to work for a year. Mason, at age six, suffered the most traumatic and long-lasting injury, as his spinal cord was crushed and nearly severed (at the T2/T3 level). He was left paralyzed from the chest down. He remained in the hospital for three months where he began the learning process of coping with life as a paraplegic through counseling, as well as physical and occupational therapy – no small task.
Even at this young age, Mason already enjoyed the outdoors and loved hunting and fishing with his dad Charlie. One of his biggest concerns upon learning of his disability was whether he would ever be able to hunt and fish again. As parents, Charlie and Linda assured him that indeed he would. As soon as he was physically able, Charlie started outfitting Mason’s four-wheeler and altering deer stands to accommodate his needs. Mason shot his first deer at age 8 and has never looked back. His perseverance and incredible outlook on life in the midst of his disability is truly amazing and anyone lucky enough to cross paths with him will tell you that he is a true blessing to be around.
Fast forward to 2012. After applying for a hunt through The Buckmasters American Deer Foundation (BADF), the Archers got a call one day from a Texas-based organization called the Empowerment Outfitter Network (EON). It was then that they were informed that a Texas whitetail deer hunt was on for Mason! In January 2013, Mason and Charlie made the trek to South Texas where Mason was treated to a hunt hosted by the W/S Turkey Creek Ranch near Uvalde. Below is Mason’s account of the hunt.
“Hello my name is Mason Archer, and I was fortunate enough to be invited to travel to Texas to hunt on the famous W/S Turkey Creek Ranch. The trip to the ranch was not that bad considering we live in South Arkansas. When we got to the ranch my dad and I met some of the nicest people ever. The hospitality of the ranch could not be beaten. The food was so good and the talks will always be remembered. When it got time to hunt that afternoon there were three of us going to the stand; me, my dad, and Danny our guide. That first afternoon was truly amazing. We saw some of the biggest deer I had ever seen. Later that afternoon, Danny saw the buck we were looking for. It was getting dark and I did not have much of a window of time to shoot. Weighing the odds I decided it would be best to take the shot rather than wait for the next day. After the shot, we gave the deer some time to go and lay down. We went back to the lodge to get some lights to find my deer. The guys looked and looked for about thirty minutes, but could not find him. Danny was thinking that perhaps it was a clean miss.
The next morning we went and hunted at the same stand to see if the buck would return, but by late morning he had not. At the last moment, Danny saw two Caracaras sitting in a tree back in the thick brush country. A Caracara is a Mexican bird and is a mix between an eagle and a vulture or buzzard. The Caracara is a predatory bird and Danny had an idea. When he went to investigate, he found my awesome buck at the foot of the tree where they were perched in anticipation of a meal. It was a true blessing to retrieve such a great deer with incredible antlers. To make things better, the cold weather had preserved the venison as well! The remainder of the weekend was spent with more hunting, visiting and eating awesome food. My Texas hunting trip and new friends will never be forgotten.”
It’s often said that trials teach us what we are. Mason’s attitude and positive spirit were so apparent and everyone associated with his hunt was touched by it. More importantly, we were reminded of the (much lesser) adversity encountered in day to day life, making us reflect on perhaps how poorly we often react to it. One hunt participant noted Proverbs 24:10; “If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.” Mason’s strength is anything but small and all involved benefited and learned from him. Mason continues to thrive. He has since graduated from high school and now attends college. Perhaps best of all, you can still find him in the field and on the water – and usually with a huge smile on his face.
