Title of Miss Utah is crowning feat in wake of brain injury

Three years ago Amy Davis lay unconscious on the Weber State University stadium track with a serious brain injury from a cheerleading stunt that went awry.

On June 26, she stood on the stage of Abravanel Hall to be crowned Miss Utah 2004.

The achievement doesn't surprise those who know Davis.

"I knew she was going to do it someday, she was just the type," said Summer Willis, her former cheer and dance instructor at Weber State.

Friend and cheerleading team member Tiana Barkdull often visited Davis in the hospital, even though Davis could not remember much from one day to the next.

"She and her partner had miscommunication," Barkdull said of the accident. "When he realized she was going to fall, he grabbed her leg. He was trying to help, but he made it worse."

By strange coincidence, coaches weren't there that day, and nobody knew what to do.

"It felt like 9-1-1 took forever to get there," Barkdull said.

But two weeks later, Davis was out of the hospital. In a few months, she was back at school.

Willis is familiar with Davis' persistence and work ethic after seeing her return to the team and continue performing after the accident.

"I wanted to be as good as everyone else, I didn't want to be treated differently," Davis said.

Not feeling comfortable with getting back into cheering stunts, the team allowed her to switch over to dancing, Willis said.

"I had a hard time with balance and coordination," Davis said about cheering after returning to school.

Because of her talent it was the natural thing to do, Willis said.

"She catches on really quick," Barkdull added. "Being thrown into dancing, most people wouldn't be able to keep up."

But juggling several talents seems to be Davis' forte. A graduate in musical theater, she can sing as well as play both the violin and piano. She's been in a commercial for Comcast, and a gigantic poster of her modeling clothing graced the front of Crossroads Mall.

Davis admits, however, that resuming her studies, music and other pursuits after her accident was not easy. The damage to her frontal lobe made it hard to focus, and she battled bouts of depression and feelings of being overwhelmed.

Later, she learned that these were natural symptoms of her injury. Understanding that offered such relief that Davis has chosen brain injury education, prevention and support for her main goal as Miss Utah.

Although it was difficult to relearn many skills during recovery, Davis said, continuing with piano and violin were critical to overcoming her mental and emotional setbacks.