- M
Hi, friends and family.
Some of you already know this situation, others may be hearing this for the first time. Either way, thank you for being here and for taking the time to find out more about what Pearl has been dealing with over the past several months. Before we get into specifics, know that Pearl is on the road to recovery. Along the way, we have been asked by many of you about how you can help. We wanted to get all the facts to see what we're really dealing with first. We have a lot of the information now so we're here to share what we know.
What happened.
July 20, 2019. It was a picture perfect Vancouver summer day, the kind we wait for all year. Pearl hopped on her bicycle for an easy ride to spend the day at the park with some friends. She was cruising down Alexander Street in Railtown when a speed wobble threw her off her bike. She flew over the handlebars and landed on her face, blacking out on impact. She slammed on the concrete with nothing bracing the fall. It was not a good scene.
We called 911 and an ambulance arrived on scene fairly quickly. They took her straight to emergency, where she stayed for the next 18 hours. A slew of doctors and CT scans later (thank you, Canadian medical system), they gave their full assessment: internal bleeding in her brain, broken nose, eight broken teeth, and road rash all over her body. A dentist also came by to jam her knocked-out teeth back in and wired and stitched her up to hold things in place. They also bandaged up her hands and leg which were heavily road rashed and swollen. She was in rough shape, to say the least.
The first three weeks after the accident were the hardest - she couldn't swallow, hold anything, or move comfortably. She did her best to manage the concussion symptoms on top of the physical pain. Since then, the swelling has dissipated, she's eating solids (with the teeth she has left), and she can write and text again with her fingers. This next phase of recovery involves the heavy lifting - dental surgery and rehabilitation for her body as she deals with pain and discomfort on a constant basis.
What now.
As many of you may know, Pearl is a freelance digital specialist and writer. She took three months off work completely to rest and rehabilitate, and as a freelancer, isn't covered with extended medical benefits. She has been covering all costs out-of-pocket as she gets referred from one specialist to another.
This is a snapshot of some of the bills because of this incident.
Dental consultations: $1,000
Dental work: $40,000+ (rough estimate, dependent on healing/processes over next year and beyond)
Physiotherapy / Massage / Acupuncture: Already spent $1,000. Treatments are $80-$100 per visit. This is on-going.
We are likely looking at $50,000 to cover all the medical bills, which is a decent amount of dollars. She is taking it day-by-day so far and we are honestly just so grateful that the accident wasn't as bad as it could have been (ie. involving a car). That definitely keeps things in perspective.
What you can do to help.
First off, thank you so much to those who came by to visit, brought her many bowls of soup, and texted her to check in. It was all tremendously helpful and appreciated.
For those of you who wanted to know what else you can do to support Pearl, your contribution of any amount is gratefully received. 10,000 Pearly White Smiles Upon You.
For local friends and family, we thought having a special Dicky's Dumps fundraiser would be an awesome way to spread some mutual love (Pearl runs Dicky's Dumps with Dickson).
You can grab these bonus treats for your contributions:
- $100 includes 1 bag of Dicky's Dumps of your choice
- $200 includes 2 bags of Dicky's Dumps of your choice
- $750 Dickson will cook a hot pot meal for you and 5 friends at your house. Dicky's Dumps included.
(4 available)
- $1000 Dickson will host a dumpling making workshop and cook a hot pot meal for you and 5 friends at your house. (4 available)
Just email [email redacted] and let us know what you'd like (choices: pork & chives, shrimp & scallop, and vegetarian). Pickups will be in the Kensington/East Van neighbourhood in Vancouver. Private dinners and workshops will be scheduled at a time that works for you.
Thank you so much in advance for your generosity.
Some of you already know this situation, others may be hearing this for the first time. Either way, thank you for being here and for taking the time to find out more about what Pearl has been dealing with over the past several months. Before we get into specifics, know that Pearl is on the road to recovery. Along the way, we have been asked by many of you about how you can help. We wanted to get all the facts to see what we're really dealing with first. We have a lot of the information now so we're here to share what we know.
What happened.
July 20, 2019. It was a picture perfect Vancouver summer day, the kind we wait for all year. Pearl hopped on her bicycle for an easy ride to spend the day at the park with some friends. She was cruising down Alexander Street in Railtown when a speed wobble threw her off her bike. She flew over the handlebars and landed on her face, blacking out on impact. She slammed on the concrete with nothing bracing the fall. It was not a good scene.
We called 911 and an ambulance arrived on scene fairly quickly. They took her straight to emergency, where she stayed for the next 18 hours. A slew of doctors and CT scans later (thank you, Canadian medical system), they gave their full assessment: internal bleeding in her brain, broken nose, eight broken teeth, and road rash all over her body. A dentist also came by to jam her knocked-out teeth back in and wired and stitched her up to hold things in place. They also bandaged up her hands and leg which were heavily road rashed and swollen. She was in rough shape, to say the least.
The first three weeks after the accident were the hardest - she couldn't swallow, hold anything, or move comfortably. She did her best to manage the concussion symptoms on top of the physical pain. Since then, the swelling has dissipated, she's eating solids (with the teeth she has left), and she can write and text again with her fingers. This next phase of recovery involves the heavy lifting - dental surgery and rehabilitation for her body as she deals with pain and discomfort on a constant basis.
What now.
As many of you may know, Pearl is a freelance digital specialist and writer. She took three months off work completely to rest and rehabilitate, and as a freelancer, isn't covered with extended medical benefits. She has been covering all costs out-of-pocket as she gets referred from one specialist to another.
This is a snapshot of some of the bills because of this incident.
Dental consultations: $1,000
Dental work: $40,000+ (rough estimate, dependent on healing/processes over next year and beyond)
Physiotherapy / Massage / Acupuncture: Already spent $1,000. Treatments are $80-$100 per visit. This is on-going.
We are likely looking at $50,000 to cover all the medical bills, which is a decent amount of dollars. She is taking it day-by-day so far and we are honestly just so grateful that the accident wasn't as bad as it could have been (ie. involving a car). That definitely keeps things in perspective.
What you can do to help.
First off, thank you so much to those who came by to visit, brought her many bowls of soup, and texted her to check in. It was all tremendously helpful and appreciated.
For those of you who wanted to know what else you can do to support Pearl, your contribution of any amount is gratefully received. 10,000 Pearly White Smiles Upon You.
For local friends and family, we thought having a special Dicky's Dumps fundraiser would be an awesome way to spread some mutual love (Pearl runs Dicky's Dumps with Dickson).
You can grab these bonus treats for your contributions:
- $100 includes 1 bag of Dicky's Dumps of your choice
- $200 includes 2 bags of Dicky's Dumps of your choice
- $750 Dickson will cook a hot pot meal for you and 5 friends at your house. Dicky's Dumps included.
(4 available)
- $1000 Dickson will host a dumpling making workshop and cook a hot pot meal for you and 5 friends at your house. (4 available)
Just email [email redacted] and let us know what you'd like (choices: pork & chives, shrimp & scallop, and vegetarian). Pickups will be in the Kensington/East Van neighbourhood in Vancouver. Private dinners and workshops will be scheduled at a time that works for you.
Thank you so much in advance for your generosity.