All she'd wanted that day was to wake up feeling better. She woke up paralyzed from the neck down.

After the car wreck in 2001, the pain in Lynne Minich-Staver's neck kept getting worse. Finally, last April, she decided to try surgery.

"It didn't quite work," she says.

A second surgery followed a month later.

She woke up unable to move.

One morning last July, lying in bed in Portland, Lynne learned from this newspaper of plans for a new walking event, the Willamette Valley Relay, scheduled for this summer.

"I cut it out," she says, "and put it next to my bed. At that point, my husband thought I had a brain injury, too."

But Lynne, who had worked as a home remodeler, had set herself a goal. And so, with the aid of a team of physical therapists, she got to work.

"Basically," she says, "I just had to learn how to function all over again."

The Willamette Valley Relay is set for July 16-17. Organizer Judy Heller says she currently has 58 teams of eight to 12 members planning to follow a 140-mile route from Champoeg State Heritage Area to Eugene.

Lynne's first leg is scheduled to be 6.3 miles: She hopes to walk a total of 18. She walks with the aid of two canes. Her training schedule this week has her walking for two hours, 20 minutes at a time.

Lynne's commitment has caught the attention of more than her teammates -- three of whom are her physical therapists. McDonald's, the restaurant chain eager to promote its "Go Active!" menu changes, has stepped up to help sponsor the event. The company is bringing in Bob Greene, best known for his stint as Oprah's personal trainer, to add some juice to the weekend.

Organizers are working on a deal to have Greene walk part of the route with Lynne.

The name of Lynne's team: Canes and Ables. ONE WORD