Hi everyone, my name is Brooke and I started this fundraiser for Ariel Morales, who is the younger brother of my fiancé, Sebastian.

As our community knows, on 9/18/21, Ariel (19) was one of the five passengers in a tragic vehicle accident just outside the town of Forks. He was transported by ambulance from Forks Community Hospital to Olympic Medical Center, and from there he was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center and admitted to the trauma ICU with a spinal fracture, multiple facial fractures, and bleeding on the left side of his brain.

Due to Covid restrictions, Harborview Medical Center is not allowing visitors for any of their patients. This has brought a lot of frustration to his family, who is wanting nothing more than to be by his side. With time, we are hoping these restrictions will be lifted and any donations can be used for travel/lodging to and from Seattle for his parents, and of course any outstanding medical bills for Ariel’s treatment. For now, his family has been receiving phone updates from the hospital staff and have been able to see him and he has been able to hear their voices over Zoom video call.

I know a lot of people have been eager for updates on his condition, and since his parents are not on social media, I will be updating this campaign as new information becomes available.

On 9/18, once he arrived at Harborview, he was taken into surgery and a piece of the left side of his skull was removed to alleviate the pressure on his brain and allow for it to swell without causing further damage.

On 9/19, his intubation tube was removed and he is breathing on his own. He knew his name and he was talking in short fragments about his truck.

On 9/20, he was fitted for a back brace to stabilize his spine. Once the orthopedic team is able to take x-rays, they will determine if he needs spinal surgery. He does have feeling and movement of his extremities, so we are beyond thankful for that.

Currently, Ariel’s biggest hurdle is going to be his brain injury. He is being monitored closely by a neurology team to evaluate the progress of the reduction of swelling of his brain, and to determine next steps. This will ultimately just take time for the brain tissue to heal and for him to be fully evaluated. In the future, he will also need facial surgery and reconstruction to repair the fractures around his eyes and upper jaw.

His family would like to thank everyone who has reached out and been praying for Ariel. The outpouring of support from the community has been overwhelmingly appreciated. He has a long road ahead, but we are currently trying to celebrate the small improvements and remain optimistic.

His family and I are continuing to pray for the other families affected by this tragedy, and we ask that the community do so as well.

Sebastian & I are working on setting up a bank account at First Federal for anyone who would like to donate that way rather than online; I will provide details once that is set up.