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Fifteen-year-old Lauren Killian is recuperating at home this week after colliding head-on with a moose while driving an all-terrain vehicle.

The Healy girl was airlifted to Fairbanks after the accident, just as her cousin Johnny “JJ” Carter had been airlifted a few weeks earlier after a paintball game accident.

Lauren and pal Hannah Keith, who rode on the back of the six-wheeler, were both wearing helmets, said Mary Killian, Lauren’s mother. But Lauren’s helmet somehow ripped off her head during the accident.

“Lauren ended up with a severe concussion, three days in the hospital, a broken nose, broken cheekbones, swelling and bruising and black eyes,” Killianr said. “Her swelling has gone down a lot now, but she’s still going to have residual headaches, dizziness and blurry vision from the head trauma.”

Hannah was not seriously injured. Lauren was knocked unconscious.

“As far as we know, Hannah has sore muscles, but she’s feeling better,” Killian said.

The collision bent the handlebars and broke the windshield on the machine. The moose ran away.

Neighbors driving home came upon the accident almost immediately and called 911. An unconscious Lauren was taken by ambulance to Anderson and medevaced to Fairbanks via Guardian Flight, an air ambulance service.

“We’re very thankful. It could have been so much worse,” Killian said.

Lauren, a junior at Tri-Valley School, must avoid any sports or physical jarring for the next six months, her mother said.

Meanwhile, JJ Carter recuperated enough to attend the memorial service last weekend for classmate Ryan Armstrong, who died at age 20 last month.

Nenana River Festival

The longest running event of its kind in the state continues this weekend just outside Denali National Park — the 32nd annual Nenana River Festival.

Allan Warren of Denali spearheads the event this year, which features the traditional downriver race at noon, followed by a wildwater rodeo at 3 p.m.

You don’t have to be an expert kayaker to enjoy this event. This is top choice spectator sport.

A barbecue follows at Denali Outdoor Center’s Otto Lake headquarters at 6:30 p.m. and will include a silent auction to benefit Athletes With a Cause.

Athletes With a Cause is a Life More Natural-sponsored charity program that allows competing outdoor athletes to raise awareness and money for different outdoor-related causes, such as purchasing disabled sports equipment and funding alternative energy education for children.

All proceeds from this year’s Nenana River Festival will help purchase a sit-ski for skiers who don’t have use of their legs.

It is especially exciting for me to watch all this unfold, since I organized this festival for 26 years.

I took over it in year six, because it drove me crazy that it never started on time. With the help of Bill “Buckwheat” Overington of Denali Outdoor Center and countless other volunteers, we made the festival happen every year for 26 years.

Warren and his web-based program, Life More Natural (www.lifemorenatural.com), provide a new direction and energy for the statewide gathering. I’m thrilled it will continue.

Other sponsors include the Denali Salmon Bake, Denali Mountain Works, Silver Gulch brewery, Moose’s Tooth brewery, Beaver Sports, Mountain Sports, Nomadic Stars, www.lifemorenatural.com and Denali Outdoor Center.

Best auction ever

Perhaps it was the $1,000 pie from the Talkeetna Roadhouse that pushed the total so high. Between that and a slew of other donated items, the Denali Education Center raised more than $64,000 during its annual fundraising auction last weekend.

Hundreds of people attended the event, which featured an Hawaiian Taste of Denali Luau with food provided by Aramark and other local eateries.

The auction provides a fantastic opportunity to visit with friends from here, who are usually too busy working to socialize, and friends who come from around the state to attend. The outcry auction — expertly handled by the incredible team of musicians, Jimmy Sandy and auctioneer Jersey Jones — is always highly entertaining.