April Jane's Road to Recovery

On December 9th, April Jane and Jesten were in Hawaii for a dear friend's wedding. They had gone swimming with some friends that afternoon, when April Jane was unexpectedly tossed around by some turbulent waves. The result was that April Jane broke her C5 vertebra, causing her to lose motor control of her arms and legs. Fortunately, April Jane's friends were nearby, were able to immediately recognize that something was wrong, and pulled her to shore with the help of some bystanders. They were met on shore by lifeguards and later EMS, who transported April Jane to The Queen's Medical Center, a level 1 trauma hospital in Honolulu. April Jane was stabilized overnight in the neurosurgical ICU with a traction splint and many medications, while Jesten was faced with many, many difficult medical decisions.

On December 10th, April Jane underwent surgery on her neck and is now recovering at The Queen's Medical Center. Surgery went well and medical providers are optimistic about April Jane's recovery, but anticipate an extended rehabilitation process ahead of her. She currently has limited movement of her feet, legs, and arms, and is still working on regaining motor control of her hands. However, at every critical juncture along the way, April Jane's medical providers have indicated that she has attained the best possible outcome or indicator of success and recovery. If there is good news to be had at each point, she has received it! April Jane's surgeon has specifically informed her that he sees no reason to not expect a complete recovery given enough time (perhaps a year or more).

She will spend several more days at The Queen's Medical Center before being admitted to an inpatient rehabilitation facility, possibly even flying home to Harborview Medical Center for the rehab, where she has a long road ahead of her, recovering from her serious injuries. She has already started physical therapy in the hospital.

Jesten, Barb (April Jane's mom), and Beth (Jesten's mom), are all in Hawaii at April Jane's side. It is unsure at this point when April Jane will be able to travel home, but ongoing support will be necessary regardless of the prognosis.

Everyone who knows April Jane knows that she is a stunningly beautiful person, inside and out, and that her soul is a light in this world. She is a gifted educator, a dancer, a weightlifter, a home renovator, an incredible artist, a selfless caregiver, a loving wife, sister, daughter, dog mom, aunt, friend, and so, so much more. We are all hurting and angry and feeling so many other things that this freak accident has happened to April Jane. It just doesn't seem fair.

The purpose of this GoFundMe is to help April Jane and Jesten with any miscellaneous expenses that come up for them along the way. They have great medical insurance (thank God) which will cover most of her medical care but here are some examples of other costs that have arisen:

Please let me (Ann, April Jane's sister) know if you have any questions or need any further information. Thank you all for being here and for loving April Jane.