Recovery won't be quick, however, and Yonnet said each day has been a grapple between despair and hope. The day after his crash, Renner said he opened his eyes and immediately wanted to be dead.

"Obviously, there is a lot of things in my life like going to the bathroom that I can't do on my own. If that's how I'm going to live, then maybe I want to die," Yonnet said.

An outpouring of support from fellow medical students and doctors gave him a reason to push aside his feelings of doom, Yonnet said.

Other fourth-year medical students immediately set up a donation fund for Yonnet at Zion's bank, as well as a grooming committee to shave and bathe their peer.

The students will also be raising money for Yonnet on "match day" March 16, the day when most fourth-year medical students are partnered up with medical schools for residency training.

"I'm hoping all the positive energy that's going his way will help him realize that people want him to get better," said medical student Sergio Gonzalez, who noted most students know Yonnet as the funny French guy who blazes around campus on a European scooter.

Already, the students have been able to collect more than $3,000.

Fred Langeland, the father of the missionary who met Yonnet in France, said those bills have racked up quickly in just four days, already surpassing Yonnet's insurance maximum by $20,000. On top of that, Yonnet has upwards of $200,000 in student loans.

"He's a very capable young man with a lot of potential; this has not diminished that," said Langeland, who has been a host to Yonnet for the past eight years.

To make a donation for Yonnet, contact any Zion's bank branch and ask for the Gael Yonnet fund.

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E-mail: estewart@desnews.com