{"id":919,"date":"2026-05-26T16:06:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T16:06:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=919"},"modified":"2026-05-26T16:06:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T16:06:21","slug":"man-once-held-in-underground-bunker-graduates-from-high-school-focusing-on-moving-forward","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=919","title":{"rendered":"Man once held in underground bunker graduates from high school, focusing on moving forward"},"content":{"rendered":"
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ABBEVILLE, Ala. (WTVY\/Gray News) – Ethan Gilliam was just 5 years old when he was kidnapped and held in an underground bunker for six days. Now, known as Ethan Alexander Turner, he is graduating from high school and looking toward the future.<\/p>\n

Read more Doug McCain, son of late Arizona Sen. John McCain, dies at 66<\/a><\/p>\n

Turner was abducted from a school bus in Dale County, Alabama, by Jimmy Lee Dykes. The bus driver, Charles Poland Jr., was killed during the kidnapping. Dykes was shot and killed by police.<\/p>\n

Now 18, Turner said he hopes people see him as more than the crime that once defined him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want people to be like, \u2018Oh, he\u2019s this boy\u2019 or this dude,\u201d Turner said. \u201cI want them not to be scared to go on a bus or do that just because of what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nicci and Brandon Turner later adopted him and on Friday, watched Ethan and two of his siblings graduate from Abbeville High School. <\/p>\n

Nicci said she has long reminded her children that trauma does not have to determine their future.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happens to you is not you. It doesn\u2019t define you,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd you don\u2019t have to be a victim. You can pick yourself up and keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n

Turner said the graduation celebration \u2014 with family, friends and community supporters in attendance \u2014 meant \u201ca whole lot\u201d to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just really blessed to have family and friends and all that stuff,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Read more 3 Arizona students participate in national spelling bee<\/a><\/p>\n

Along the way, Turner found stability and an outlet through art and hands-on work, including painting, building and creating. He also developed interests in nature and forestry.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like nature \u2014 forestry and all that stuff,\u201d he said. \u201cJust looking outside, basically.\u201d<\/p>\n

At school, Turner joined Future Farmers of America, learned trade skills and discovered a passion for welding.<\/p>\n

Former Midland City Elementary principal Phillip Parker said the graduation was emotional for teachers and staff who knew Turner when the kidnapping happened.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was very emotional for teachers and myself,\u201d Parker said. \u201cBut he adjusted. I don\u2019t know of a kid that could have done any better to come back into a situation that he was in and just be treated normal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walding called Turner \u201ca survivor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Retired Dale County Superintendent Donny Bynum said Poland, the bus driver who was killed during the kidnapping, would be proud of Turner\u2019s progress.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know without a doubt he\u2019s smiling down today to see what Ethan has done,\u201d Bynum said.<\/p>\n

Turner said he hopes others facing their own challenges keep moving forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust don\u2019t give up and try to keep going and keep pacing yourself,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For Turner, the next chapter comes after a childhood marked by trauma and a future he said is defined by persistence \u2014 and by what he builds next. Currently, he plans to attend Wallace Community College to study welding.<\/p>\n

Read more Tucson organization builds enrichment center for foster, adoptive children<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ethan Gilliam was just 5 years old when he was kidnapped and held in an underground bunker for six days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":918,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nMan once held in underground bunker graduates from high school, focusing on moving forward - Tucson Moving Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=919\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Man once held in underground bunker graduates from high school, focusing on moving forward - 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