Last Thursday, July 17th, was the worst day of our friend Michelle’s life, the end of her parents’ lives. 

Michelle, Yvette, and Eain woke up full of love, gratitude, and excitement for the days ahead. Nana & Papa, Michelle’s parents, were taking a road trip with the love of their lives, their granddaughter, to celebrate their 49th wedding anniversary. With snacks packed and 11 year-old Yvette buckled up in the back seat, they headed off to Reno to make new memories together.

As they approached Mile Marker 8 on Highway 89, their car was smashed into by a driver who crossed over a double yellow line to pass other vehicles at the crest of a hill. Michelle’s parents died instantly. Yvette was life-flighted to Mercy Medical in Redding, CA and then to Doernbecher’s Children's Hospital in Portland. In addition to the visible, brutal blunt-force injuries Yvette sustained in the crash, her kidneys and spleen were lacerated and her left shoulder was fractured. Yvette was awake and alert during the crash, but passed out after seeing the lifeless bodies of her grandparents slumped over each other in the front seats, unable to “wake up.” 

Michelle and her family need our help as they learn how to navigate the coming months as a family torn apart in an instant by someone else’s carelessness. Michelle and Eain are self-employed and can’t use Oregon Paid Leave to take time off to care for Yvette’s physical injuries. The time and energy that it will take to shepherd Yvette through the emotional injuries will be a struggle every day for the rest of their lives.

Michelle is her parents’ only child. She is walking the excruciating path of having her parents' remains returned to Oregon and laid to rest, while suffering the torment and trauma of having lost them, her best friends, because someone else wanted to reach their destination a few minutes sooner.

Michelle and Eain have given our community life and hope through their non-profit, which empowers survivors of all kinds with medical tattoos. Whether camouflaging disfiguring scars, covering them with art, or the many other ways their tattoos have helped survivors have confidence in their bodies, the Vargas are generous and provide so much value to folks who are otherwise ignored or forgotten. 

With your help, we can raise funds to allow Michelle and Eain the ability to shift their attention into healing their family as much as possible in these first weeks of devastating loss.