Morton’s recovery continues

Glenn Morton, the Orange Coast College men’s tennis coach who was

critically injured in a head-on car accident April 27, is out of his

coma and improving slowly, his son, Brian Morton, said.

“He is making progress every day,” Brian Morton said of his

father, who remains at Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, but will

be moved, possibly as soon as this week, to a rehabilitation center.

The younger Morton, said his dad came out of an induced coma in

late May, but the extent from which he will recover from trauma to

his brain is still unknown.

“He’s beginning to talk, he recognizes family members and close

family friends and he is breathing on his own,” Brian Morton said.

“He has full motion with his right arm and right leg, but not so much

with his left side.

“We’re still very optimistic he will make a full recovery, but it

could be a slow process.”

The local tennis community has held several fundraisers to help

pay Glenn Morton’s medical costs and Brian Morton said his family is

thankful for all the support.

The Palisades Tennis Club raised more than $6,300 for the Glenn

Morton trust with a silent auction last month and donations have also

been contributed by Mesa Verde Country Club, where Morton was a

tennis instructor for nearly 20 years, and the Pacific Sands Cabana,

a Huntington Beach club at which he taught until his accident.

In his first season at OCC this spring, Morton guided the Pirates

to a second-place finish in the Orange Empire Conference and a

postseason berth. He was named conference Coach of the Year.

Those who wish to donate to the Glenn Morton trust can mail checks

payable to Scott (Glenn’s brother) or Brian Morton to 20882 Hunter

Lane, Huntington Beach, Calif., 92646. Information on the trust is

available by phoning (714) 356-6540.

-- Barry Faulkner