You might expect to find Joe Frazier bubbly about the outpouring of love that his hometown and all of Summit County showered on him.

After all, their carwashing, bake sales, townwide garage sale, blood drives, auctions, benefit rodeo and many quiet donations gave the Fraziers the financing they needed for Joe's recent liver transplant surgery.But if you expected to find a jolly youth, that would be a misreading of psychology.

As his mother, Barbara, explained, the 16-year-old fell ill so quickly last month with a deadly liver ailment that the family didn't have time to explain what was happening to him.

As far as Joe was concerned, he went to sleep. When he woke up, he found he had undergone extensive surgery. Many tubes drained fluids from his body or dripped in blood and sustenance. He had to try and cope with the demands that a transplanted organ places on its recipient.

So as he recuperates, Joe can be excused if he's sometimes pensive and quiet, or if his answers are brief. It's not that he isn't grateful; he is, deeply.

After all, this has been a terrible change in his life.

Interviewed in the family home at Oakley, with the remnants of the welcome-home balloons and ribbons still on the brown picket fence outside, the honor student looked thin and languid, but his color was healthy.When he stood, his hand sometimes trembled. He moved slowly getting up, but then walked more crisply. He answered questions in a low voice.

On one wall was a sign that says, "Way to go Joe." On another, a huge folder carried the label, "Joe's cards from us!!"

How was the welcome home, once he was released from the hospital? "Had the fire engine there to escort us home," he replied.

Where did the engine meet them? In Peoa.

How long will his recovery take? "They're not sure. It just depends on how well I do . . .

"I want to go back to school as soon as possible."

An honor student, Joe will be a junior this fall. He might start back half a day at a time, he said, then increase to a full day as he grows stronger.

He plans to enter college in a few years, probably the University of Utah, and study architecture.

But for now, his life is focused on recovering and coping.

"We have to monitor him at home," said Barbara Frazier.

"We have to do his blood pressure and temperature and his pulse twice a day," she said.

They watch his temperature because fever is one of the first signs of organ rejection. Joe also must be careful about exposure to viruses and germs, because anti-rejection drugs weaken a person's immune system.

"He'll have to do that the rest of his life," she said of the careful monitoring.

Joe travels to LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City for blood tests on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

On Tuesdays, he returns to the hospital for a transplant clinic, where he has a checkup. At that time, the home-monitoring results are given to the physicians.

"He's doing great," his mother said. "So far he's well within the range where he should be, on all counts."

But it's no fun for a kid to be stuck in the house on beautiful summer days.

"I spend a lot of time watching TV and lying down," he said.

Asked to say how he felt about the fact that the town and county rallied to help, he struggled to find the words. "Good," he said. "People can come together and help out."

Barbara Frazier said she thought "overwhelmed" is a good way to describe their feelings. The entire Summit County helped them, "big time," she said.

The outreach went beyond Summit County. Many folks who recently moved into the area have connections with people who live elsewhere in Utah, and these friends also contributed. Still, she said, "Most of the work came from people who live in the community."

The family is also overwhelmed about other aspects of what happened. "It's a hard thing to have a price tag put on your kid's head," she said.

Joe takes two 20- to 30-minute walks every day, helping to build up his strength. Since he left the hospital on Aug. 5, he already has put on 10 pounds. His family hopes he adds another 25 soon.

Meanwhile, many friends come to visit.

One special pal, D.J. Glade, drops around every day.

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Someone from his family is always with him: dad Blake, the Summit County auditor; mom; his brother, Josh, 18; or sister, Jamie, 15. Another member of the family - Jake the vizsla, a Hungarian hunting dog who is notably sweet-tempered - stays with him through the long days of healing.

Does Jake do much to keep him company? "Well, he lays on the bed," Joe said.

His mother reckoned that so many prayers were offered on his behalf they couldn't be ignored. Asked if he thinks the prayers did any good, he nods his head.

Does he have any message for the people who rallied to his side? "Just tell 'em thanks," Joe said softly.

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