Hi Everyone!

This is Marni -- Hannah Viechnicki's (favorite?!) cousin. :)

I am writing in support of my cousin now. Many of you already know about Hannah's accident on August 11, when she endured a sudden 15-foot fall from a second-story porch. While she was on the porch, the porch railing broke, and she, as well as two other young women (who are on the mend), landed on granite rock. Ambulances were required instantly.

Because Hannah landed on her back, fracturing her L2 vertebrae, her recovery continues to be especially complex and lengthy.

During the months following the accident, Hannah's entire life has flipped upside down. Hannah is one of the strongest people I know -- both physically and mentally. Anyone who knows Hannah can only conjure exuberance, energy, and total determination when they think of her. Yet, on August 11, everything changed. She has worn a back brace (exclusively for the four months after the accident, including while bathing), and even now, with some relief from the original full-torso brace, she still has to wear a brace (she has two kinds, depending on the activity); she still can't bend over to pick up anything as simple as a piece of paper that falls on the floor or hold anything more than ten pounds. Between required time in bed lying prostrate and her general lack of mobility, Hannah hasn't been able to earn an income, and navigating next steps toward future work will take at least a year, according to medical advice.

Walking quickly is not possible. Stairs are tricky. What used to be a normal activity -- a stroll in the park -- has to be taken slowly, with ease, and with the acceptance that there will be the sort of pain afterwards that even pain relievers can't quite touch, likely resulting in Hannah spending the following day in bed.

Hannah has felt immense gratitude toward those of you who have contributed to her Meal Train in August just after the accident, and as such, she has also expressed hesitancy toward my idea of developing a GoFundMe. Her words a few months ago, when I first suggested a GoFundMe, "The Meal Train already is a GoFundMe...." We both now agree this isn't the case and that Hannah's vertebral fracture has led to complications in healing that will take at least one year total from the injury date (excluding issues that may last for the rest of her life). She needs more help.

Hannah has faced considerable medical expenses in addition to her inability to move forward with any plans after graduating from college. Especially while adjusting to pain, pain relief medication, and major sleep deprivation.

With the new year approaching, my hope is that we can ease what's been a monumental emotional, physical, but also financial burden on my cousin, so Hannah can focus on what a recent college grad ought to be focusing on now -- not only healing from past trauma, but also repaving her path as the dynamite spirit she's always been, a person who won't let even a broken back get in her way. Please join me in supporting her.