Hello,

This GoFundMe is a means to help Barbara Handlin and her family as they navigate a recent medical crisis. Barbara is a wife, a mother, a daughter, a grandmother, a niece, a sister, and a friend to everyone she meets.

Barbara suffered an initial back injury in December and several doctor appointments followed, revealing a fractured T5 vertebrae that was beginning to puncture her spinal fluid and spinal cord. She was told to rest and the fracture would heal on its own. In early February, her symptoms worsened, causing loss of feeling in her legs. She was taken to the closest emergency room where she underwent an 8-hour thoracic decompression and fusion surgery to prevent her from becoming paralyzed. The operation went as planned but the road to recovery is very long and very expensive.

Barbara was in the hospital for about a month. During the latter part of that time, she was moved to a rehabilitation hospital where she began the process to relearn how to walk. She is now home and attends out patient physical therapy. She will have a heavy reliance on a wheelchair and walker for the foreseeable future and will likely not see major physical improvements for a year or so.

Unfortunately, she does not have short-term disability coverage through her employer and options for income are very limited at the moment.

The money raised in this GoFundMe will be used to help the Handlin family with bills and expenses while Barbara recovers from this life-changing surgery. All donations will be received with the utmost appreciation for the friends and community that help us in this difficult time.

With love, prayers, and thanks -

The Handlin Family