Holly Daubenspeck defied expectations in May 2012 when she received her bachelor's degree from Susquehanna University.

"When she walked across the stage, 4,000 people stood up," said her mother, Pat, of Moore Township.

The president of the college even praised Holly's accomplishment.

It wasn't only that Holly was graduating but also that she walked across the stage to accept her degree.

Holly had been in a car accident Sept. 6, 2011, while on her way home from student teaching in Jersey Shore. Her mother described the back roads she used as twisting and turning, hilly and flooded from heavy rains that continued as Holly drove.

Another vehicle struck the driver's side of Holly's car. Although the driver and passenger of the other vehicle were not hurt, Holly sustained 11 broken bones and a severe brain injury.

After arriving at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville that night, Pat and her husband, Ron, spoke with doctors, who gave them a grim prognosis.

"If she lived 24 hours, we would talk again, and then after that it was if she makes it to 72 hours, we'll talk again," Pat said. "And she did."

When it appeared certain Holly would survive, doctors said the 21-year-old Northampton grad would most likely remain in a permanent vegetative state.

Over the past two years, Holly had to relearn everything, even basics such as how to breathe, swallow, eat and drink.

Learning to talk again has been the biggest challenge.

"You're skipping syllables again," Pat said to Holly during an interview with The Press last week. "Tap it out. You can do it."

Tapping her right hand on her thigh, Holly spoke, describing plans to begin teaching music from her home.

"We hope it will start at the beginning of September," she said. Her words were clear but her voice was low, sounding a lot like the speech of someone with a hearing impairment.

Holly has nerve damage in her left hand and is hoping therapy through the Performing Arts Rehabilitation Center in Bethlehem will help her regain proficiency on her instruments, which include piano, viola, violin and singing.

"Her major instrument was her voice," said Pat, adding Holly was a classically trained singer. "It's not back yet."

Pat credits Holly's success to her drive, telling a story about Holly falling while miniature golfing with a friend.

When asked about falling, Holly told her mother, "It doesn't matter how many times I fall, it matters how many times I get back up."

Her drive also helped her in school, where she took more credits than required each semester. Her mother didn't understand why.

"I used to holler at her, 'why are you so driven?'" Pat said. "Because she did that anyway and didn't listen to me, she was able to graduate on time."

Because Holly was unable to finish student teaching, she did not earn her degree in music education, but she did have had enough credits for her bachelor's in music, Pat said.

Holly hopes to get her education degree in the future but first she needs more speech therapy.

"She's getting better and better all the time (but) she's not there yet," said Pat.

This school year, Holly she will be volunteering as an aide at George Wolf Elementary School, where her mother is a first-grade teacher.

In the meantime, her drive will keep her progressing.

Holly said she used to feel others did not appreciate or understand her drive.

"But now, since the accident, she feels very appreciated," Pat said. "People finally understand."