PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — John Mallard-Crenshaw was walking home from the Royal Farms on Virginia Beach Boulevard and was heading down Pecan Point Road last December when he was hit by a vehicle.

He remembers nothing of the entire day, though recently, he recalled the moment when someone pulled him to the sidewalk. The family does not, however, know who got him there, but it was that person who called 911. And, police do not have a suspect.

The hit-and-run, at around 7:45 p.m. Dec. 23, put him in the hospital for a long time. It’s something his mother won’t soon forget. She vividly remembers getting that phone call.

“I felt like I weighed two tons,” Cheryl Mallard-Hodges said. “And it just totally tears you apart. Nobody — no one could ever understand that feeling, that particular feeling I received as mom. But I had to try and hold myself together.”

The hit-and-run put him in the hospital for a long time.

The family came together to work for his recovery, navigating a difficult path through the healthcare system. It took two weeks for John to be able to open his eyes. His father told 10 On Your Side, John had to communicate by blinking for a while.

“Correspond with him, blink for yes or no,” Ronald Crenshaw Sr. recalled. “Does this hurt, yes or no.”

Mallard-Crenshaw is now home, able to talk — albeit slowly. But as his parents put it, his personality is back, and he is still able to play a mean game of chess.

“He is a fighter,” Crenshaw Sr. said. “I can guarantee you that.”

“He is defying the odds and the stigma,” Cheryl Mallard-Hodges said. “He is coming back and he is coming back strong.”

They tell 10 On Your Side that his girlfriend has been a huge help. She constantly stayed by his side throughout the recovery process.

Mallard-Crenshaw still needs to stay at his parents’ house. He cannot get out of bed on his own. Speaking out for the first time, he said the thing he is looking forward to the most is simply getting back on his feet.

“Just being able to walk again, I want to be able to walk again,” Mallard-Crenshaw told 10 On Your Side.

He is keeping a positive mental attitude.

When asked how he is holding up, he replied, “Doing pretty good, I’m not complaining.”

“It’s hard, it’s hard,” Crenshaw Sr. said. “You see your child in this type of condition, and essentially, there’s nothing that you, personally, can do to bring forth that person that was there before. It takes its toll. But we remain strong for John.”

The family is upping the reward for information on the Crime Line — a resource for anyone who knows about what happened. Mallard-Crenshaw and his parents urge anyone who knows something to speak up, even if it seems like a small piece of information.

“Please, please please, call the Crime Line,” Mallard-Hodges said, pleading with the community. “Let them know what you know. You will remain anonymous. We need this information so the same person doesn’t do the same thing to someone else.”

Anyone with any information about that hit and run is encouraged to call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.