LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – A survivor of the crash that killed seven of his golf team members is now working to support burn victims and their families.

Dayton Price traveled from Canada to Lubbock, Thursday morning, to give back to an organization that became a second home for his family.

Price dreams of one day taking a swing at a professional tournament. He was one step closer, playing collegiate golf at the University of the Southwest in Hobbs. The chance to play on scholarship brought him from a town outside Toronto, Canada, all the way to New Mexico.

He loves to come back to Hobbs, but it’s bittersweet.

“Obviously it’s tough because you’re out there at a place that you used to be every day with some people that are no longer here anymore,” he said. “I didn’t know that that day, it might have been my final round and it was the final round for most of my teammates.”

On March 15, 2022, six of his teammates and his coach were killed in a fiery head-on crash.

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His mom, Ornella, says then came the 2 a.m. phone call, layovers and only one seat left on a flight to Lubbock.

“My husband said, ‘you should go,’ and that hour flight to get here to Lubbock was probably the hardest. To not know what I was going to find when I landed and if he was going to be alive,” she said.

Dayton suffered 3rd and 4th degree burns on 45 percent of his body. While he was in the hospital for more than 80 days, he knows his family was being well taken care of.

“We’re overwhelmed and grateful to know that we had a home to come to, and to be able to go back and forth to the hospital,” she said.

The Price family stayed at Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Southwest. His sister, Noella, says while she was busy being there for her brother, it helped take care of everything else.

“They made me feel very comforted, especially because I was, I’m still in high school. I was still doing homework and I had a bunch of tests to do and they all let me use whatever I needed, created this space for me that I really appreciated,” Noella said.

Dayton and his family created Price Strong, to help support organizations like the Ronald McDonald House, and other burn victims and their families.

After hosting its second golf tournament in Canada, the family brought $5,000 back for families in Lubbock.

“I’m just grateful to be alive and given a second chance at life and being able to do this stuff, it just makes that so much better.”

Price Strong also helps support Dayton. He and his family travel back and forth to Lubbock for specialized treatment at the UMC Burn Unit.

While he is still healing, Dayton isn’t giving up on his dream.

“There’s no way that I don’t play professional golf after what happened. There’s no quit in me and there’s not going to be. For myself, but also for my teammates and my coach,” he said. “It’s going to be pretty tough to stop me and seven other people. So, hopefully one day we can do another interview when I play in the PGA tour.”

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