Rock attack victim overwhelmed on return to Ohio

UNIONTOWN, Ohio (AP) — A middle-school teacher from Ohio who was severely injured when a rock was dropped from a Pennsylvania highway overpass onto her vehicle said she was overwhelmed by family and friends who welcomed her home.

Sharon Budd arrived to cheers at her home in Unionville on Wednesday after undergoing surgeries and therapy in the three months since the rock attack, The Repository newspaper in nearby Canton reported.

“I don’t know what to say,” Budd said after stepping out of a vehicle. She snuggled her small dog, Coco, close to her chest and embraced her tearful daughter, Kaylee, a college student.

The family is looking forward to returning to everyday life.

“It’s going to be nice to get back into a routine again,” Kaylee Budd said.

Sharon Budd, a 52-year-old cancer survivor, was traveling through Pennsylvania with her husband and daughter the night of July 10 when the rock crashed through the front window, causing her severe head injuries. Her skull was crushed, she lost her right eye and she suffered brain damage.

Four young men are charged in the case.

But Budd’s husband, Randy Budd, said the family’s focus is his wife’s recovery.

“I’m so proud of this lady right here,” he said.