‘Thank you for praying’ | Knoxville boy injured in tornado speaks for first time since accident

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee — A Knoxville family whose 9-year-old son was injured in a tornado last spring shared a milestone they’ve been praying for in the young boy’s recovery.

The White family was driving to Missouri in April 2025 when a severe storm swept through Paducah, Kentucky. Their car was hit by the tornado, leaving young Bentley with a serious head injury.

He’s been recovering from his injuries ever since. The family told 10News back in November that Bentley was struggling to talk. He hadn’t spoken since the accident. 

But on Thursday morning, the family said their prayers were answered on social media, along with a video of Bentley.

“Daddy! Mommy and Daddy!” Bentley says!

“Good job, buddy,” said his dad in the background. 

“On the 22nd of January, Bentley woke up trying to say Dad, and in less than an hour, it went from struggling to say it, to the videos you see here,” the family wrote on their Bentley’s Battle Facebook page. “God has been so faithful to Bentley and our family.   For all the prayers that have been shared specifically asking God to give Bentley his voice back-THANK YOU!  God has heard them and is actively working in Bentley to answer those prayers. In the last nearly ten months, there have been lots of tears shed for our son. Very few have been happy tears.  Today, my eyes are swollen with the happiest tears I have ever cried.” 

Then on Saturday night, Bentley posted a message of his own with a video.

“Thank you for praying,” Bentley said with a thumbs up. 

Bentley and his family now live in Kansas City, where he has received specialized care. He also returned to school for the first time in nearly a year earlier in January.