Medical bills for recent graduate
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My sister did something incredibly bold. As a 30 year old stay-at-home mom, Carrie went back to school to become a licensed cosmetologist. She decided to invest in herself and her future by taking out about $17,000 in educational loans.
Over her 9 months at The Paul Mitchell School, Carrie participated in as many extra events, fashion shows, and master classes as possible to gain experience, and was moved to the second chair in the studio. This signified that she was the second highest student in her class. When she finished the program in August 2013, she had completed almost every honors program the school offered.
Just days after classes finished, Carrie was in a horrific motocross accident while hanging out with friends. She and her husband are both experienced riders, so riding with friends was something she had done many times before. The dirt bike landed on Carrie's leg, breaking it and also shattering her knee cap into about a dozen pieces. Her face and arms were also badly bruised, but ultimately she was just lucky to be alive.
The doctor said Carrie's shattered knee was the worst he had ever seen. We talked about her future career, and he said it was very realistic that she would never walk normally again, let alone stand long enough to do hair.
After a grueling surgery, the surgeon said he had done all he could by inserting a metal plate down the side of her leg, and piecing her knee back together with cadaver bones. There were no promises of what the end result would be, and she would have to work extremely hard to hopefully regain full functionality one day.
As she woke up from anesthesia and pain medicine, I told her what the doctor said. None of us wanted to upset her, but I wanted her to know the truth. Her dreams and hard work were being threatened, and I wanted her to know just how hard she would have to fight for them. She told me, weeks later, that the surgery she endured also racked up about $100,000 in medical bills after insurance. This adds on $1,000 each month in additional bills.
I am proud to say that my sister kept such a positive attitude as she recovered. She was bed-ridden for months; now she walks very well, has passed her state exams, and is a licensed cosmetologist in our great state of Florida.
She was cleared to begin working on February 14th, 2014, six months after her accident. Just 6 weeks later, she made it to the third round of interviews with an award-winning salon; it has been ranked "Best Salon" in Jacksonville and awarded "Titanium Status," which means it is in the top 1% of salons nationwide!
I am asking for your help as my talented, motivated sister begins a career that she so bravely pursued and was made for. Carrie has a special gift for making people feel like a million bucks and now, the know-how to help them look like it! She was prepared for the debt of educational loans, but starting her career with an additional $100,000 in debt is more than overwhelming - it could be crippling.
Any amount helps, and so does sharing this page with all of your friends on Facebook/Twitter/etc! Please know that whatever your contribution - whether it be monetary or by sharing - is helping to lift a huge burden. Thank you so much for your time and God bless!
Over her 9 months at The Paul Mitchell School, Carrie participated in as many extra events, fashion shows, and master classes as possible to gain experience, and was moved to the second chair in the studio. This signified that she was the second highest student in her class. When she finished the program in August 2013, she had completed almost every honors program the school offered.
Just days after classes finished, Carrie was in a horrific motocross accident while hanging out with friends. She and her husband are both experienced riders, so riding with friends was something she had done many times before. The dirt bike landed on Carrie's leg, breaking it and also shattering her knee cap into about a dozen pieces. Her face and arms were also badly bruised, but ultimately she was just lucky to be alive.
The doctor said Carrie's shattered knee was the worst he had ever seen. We talked about her future career, and he said it was very realistic that she would never walk normally again, let alone stand long enough to do hair.
After a grueling surgery, the surgeon said he had done all he could by inserting a metal plate down the side of her leg, and piecing her knee back together with cadaver bones. There were no promises of what the end result would be, and she would have to work extremely hard to hopefully regain full functionality one day.
As she woke up from anesthesia and pain medicine, I told her what the doctor said. None of us wanted to upset her, but I wanted her to know the truth. Her dreams and hard work were being threatened, and I wanted her to know just how hard she would have to fight for them. She told me, weeks later, that the surgery she endured also racked up about $100,000 in medical bills after insurance. This adds on $1,000 each month in additional bills.
I am proud to say that my sister kept such a positive attitude as she recovered. She was bed-ridden for months; now she walks very well, has passed her state exams, and is a licensed cosmetologist in our great state of Florida.
She was cleared to begin working on February 14th, 2014, six months after her accident. Just 6 weeks later, she made it to the third round of interviews with an award-winning salon; it has been ranked "Best Salon" in Jacksonville and awarded "Titanium Status," which means it is in the top 1% of salons nationwide!
I am asking for your help as my talented, motivated sister begins a career that she so bravely pursued and was made for. Carrie has a special gift for making people feel like a million bucks and now, the know-how to help them look like it! She was prepared for the debt of educational loans, but starting her career with an additional $100,000 in debt is more than overwhelming - it could be crippling.
Any amount helps, and so does sharing this page with all of your friends on Facebook/Twitter/etc! Please know that whatever your contribution - whether it be monetary or by sharing - is helping to lift a huge burden. Thank you so much for your time and God bless!
Organizer
Caitlin Grae Gilbert
Organizer
Jacksonville, FL
