Dollars for Dionna's Specialized Therapy
Dionna had a stroke at 14 years old.
Dave and I are longtime friends of the Zupparo Family. We want to help her reach her full potential.
She wanted to be an Emergency Department Doctor. She was 4.25 GPA student, four sport athlete, and beautiful, intelligent, vivacious and determined young girl. She wanted to attend Roberts Wesleyan College for her bachelors (where she would play basketball) and U of R for her medical training.
On November 2, 2011 at the age of 14, she was competing in sectionals for her school's varsity swim team. She had just finished her warm-up, got out of the water and told her friend she was not feeling well and down she went.
Strong hospital diagnosed her with a massive stroke, followed by a craniotomy to control the swelling in the brain.
Dionna was paralyzed on her right side, unable to speak, eat, swallow, walk or have use of her right side.
Dionna has fought to recover. She has made use of her competitive nature. She is now able to walk with the assistance of a device. Her speech continues to improve and at the Taub Clinic in August of 2014 she has made some gains to the function of her right arm and hand. (She can hold her cell phone in that hand now!)
Over the past the past 3 years, the family has used all their available financial assets to ensure that Dionna receives the therapy she needs to recover. She received intensive therapy at the Taub Clinic, University of Alabama, for her shoulder/upper arm and then 6 months later for her speech.
We are requesting your help. At 17, she now wishes to go back to the Taub Clinic to continue working on the lower arm and hand. The constraint induced intensive therapy consists of 3 to 4 weeks of therapy four hours a day, 5 days a week. An additional four hours of practice exercises are required each day. The constraint therapy consists of casting the good arm which forces the use of the weaker arm. Approximate cost of this type of therapy is $17000.
No medical insurance covers this type of therapy. The initial $2000 raised on this site has long been spent on her trip to Taube Clinic August 2014.
She has made remarkable strides in her recovery but still has a long way to go. We want to help her reach her full potential. We encourage everyone who visits this
We would like to help her with improving her speech as well. There is a great resource in Milwaukee.
She has made remarkable strides in her recovery but still has a long way to go. We encourage everyone who visits this site to make a donation and spread the word.
Thank you so much.
Dave and Sue Wilson
