DEMOPOLIS – When faced with tragedy, students and faculty at West Alabama Preparatory School know how to give support in a time of need.

There was not a car in WAP’s front parking lot that didn’t have a caring message dedicated to injured WAP student, Whitney A. Martin, in its windows.

WAP principal, Lynn Compton, said the entire school has her in their prayers since she was injured in Friday afternoon’s one-vehicle accident on Bell Grayson Road.

“Since we are such a small school, everyone was affected by this,” Compton said. “That Monday, Rev. Art Lucky from the Methodist Church did a chapel service for the school. It was very healing. It helped us work through a time of shock and grief.”

According to Compton, WAP students have spent a lot of time in prayer to ask for Martin’s recovery and strength of their star softball player.

“She plays on our softball team and she was hoping to play basketball this year,” Compton said.

“She’s an awesome pitcher,” said Kim Wilkinson, a good friend and classmate.

Martin is currently a senior at WAP and has been there since pre-kindergarten. Her mother is a second-grade teacher at the school and her younger brother is in the third grade there.

“She has a lot of history here,” Compton said. “She’s been here with the same kids all these years.”

Compton said classmates and friends have been to visit Martin in Birmingham and she has been in close contact with her mother.

“I know her surgery went well,” Compton said. “They are seeing positive results and hoping for rehab at the end of the week.”

Wilkinson said she has been to visit Martin in Birmingham.

“It was tough see her, knowing you couldn’t help her,” Wilkinson said.

Allison Elmore, another classmate and friend, described Martin as loud and fun.

“Without a doubt she is the most outgoing girl in our class,” Elmore said. “She has a magnetic personality.”

Wilkinson agreed “every second with Whitney is never a dull moment.”

Elmore and Wilkinson said each class made posters and students are making cards for Martin.

“We’ve gotten places to put messages up for her,” Wilkinson said. “Katie Cameron got the credit union to put ‘God bless Whitney’ on their scroll.”

With only four girls in the 18-member senior class, these ladies have grown to be close friends.

“We are going to try to hang up flyers all around town to get people to remember her in their prayers,” Elmore said.

Compton, Elmore and Wilkinson all agree that Martin is a beautiful person who is always there when you need her.

“She could come to school with no makeup, a t-shirt, jeans and her hair wet and she would still look great,” Wilkinson said. “Her hair would dry perfectly.”

“She always has something funny to say. She is school spirited and good natured,” Compton said. “She’s just amusing. She’s a beautiful person with a beautiful smile.”

To help the Martin family, an account at Robertson Bank has been opened.

Compton said to ask for Jennifer Thomason to make a contribution.

“We encouraging people to donate,” Compton said. “We just want people to keep her in their prayers.”