My name is Chasiti McGehee. I'm a 37 year old mom, wife, photographer and artist, and professional cleaner. I live in the small rural town of Water Valley, MS.

My life literally turned upside down on August 13, 2025. I had a major car crash that almost took my head off.

Now that I have survived, I don't know how to continue living without my income and not being able to work for the foreseeable future. Like most Americans, I can not afford health insurance.

The money recieved from donations will go towards recovery without work and paying Med-Trans (helicopter lift), Dunn Dentistry of UT, UTROP anesthesiology and UT Physicians in Memphis TN, my ambulance ride thru Baptist Memorial in Oxford MS.

Needless to say, I no longer have a job. I don't know when I will be able to resume work or if I'll ever be hired for work given my disfigurement.

I underwent 5 major facial reconstructive surgeries in less than one month while being hospitalized in Memphis, TN. So far, a total of 6 all together. I have more minor procedures to undergo in the future.

This has all shattered the walls of my pride (and my vanity). I need help. We need help. There is no such thing as a donation too small. It's all so very valuable and appreciated. Funds will go towards medical bills, lawyer fees and to help me rebuild my life without bankruptcy.

The donation amount I'm asking for doesn't actually cover everything but it covers a lot. It will greatly help my family out in getting these dues paid off or atleast lowered before they go to debt collectors.

"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." HEBREWS 13:2

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MY STORY — as condensed as it can be...

On August 13, 2025, I survived a major crash. I should have died. I did die. I just didn't stay dead. Thank God.

I was coming home from work when a severe thunderstorm with straight line winds blew my windshield wipers off of my car. I was about 5 or 7 miles from home. I was in the area locals call "Grinder's Switch". I was going downhill and approaching a bend in the road. Due to complete loss of visuals, I hydroplaned (causing acceleration) and my car hit the bend. The impact from hitting the ditch, driveway and massive metal drain pipe sent my car into a flip, landing upside down on the other side of the driveway in the ditch. The right side of my face was completely blown off from the airbag. I could have walked away from that crash had there been no airbag. I hung upside down, stuck in my seat belt for 45 minutes hemorrhaging before being extracted by the jaws of life.

I thank God that there just so happened to be a volunteer firefighter driving about 100 yards behind me. Shortly after he stopped to come to my rescue, the next two cars that drove by were registered nurses. One of them, who just so happened to be a local in the town I live in, stop and stayed with me. According to what the fireman told my husband, that woman found a way to hold my hand and hold my lacerated face while praying for me until fire and rescue arrived. The fireman told my husband later on that he knew one thing, that I loved the lord, my husband and my kid. He said I was praying when he reached me and I was praying just before blacked out. I remember this. I started praying the second I realized I was about to crash and I never stopped. Well. I stopped long enough to tell the fireman how to contact my husband at work, and I gave him my home address to have the police get to my daughter and be with her until my husband could get to her.

I remember it all so vividly. Everything.

I remember the moment "the lights went out" before the RN drove by and stopped. And I was ready to die. I did not want to die at all. But. I had accepted my fate. Thank God that was not my fate.

I have 7th cranial nerve damage. I suffer with partial facial palsy, paralyzing my right eye and brow area. I lost a lot of orbital and cheek muscles on that side. Some were even cut completely out during one emergency excision. I also suffered a break in my right orbital wall (eye socket). My right jaw was dislocated by 2.5 inches. My skull, next to my ear and temple area, was dislocated and realigned. I also suffered a broken shoulder blade, torn muscles, and torn ligaments on the left side of my body. I almost lost my right eye and my right ear.

I lost a lot of my native skin due to necrosis (dead skin) and infection. I had to endure an emergency excision of my entire right cheek while inside of my "curtain room" at the ER a week after my crash...without any kind of anesthesia or pain medicine.

I had another major reconstructive surgery October 13, 2025. That surgery mainly included skin grafting; moving skin from one part of my body to sew onto my face and head. The cheek meat I did have left over was used as a flap. It was pulled up and stitched my cheekbone. I have a dent on the right side of my face; in the temple area and the edge of my eye. It's made much progress since the surgey.

My right eyeball is safe as of right now. Future complications are highly possible with optic pressure and ocular nerve damage. However, my lids sag over and away from my eye. This is partially from the nerve damage. But also, because they sewed the outer edge of my lids together to keep them from tearing open and sagging completely over my eye. They had to do this while my lids were swollen. I now need corrective surgery for my bottom lid. It's not sitting flush up against my eyeball.

I am still healing. Slow and steady.

My surgeon says I can't even be in direct sunlight for a year. This recovery process is going to be very long. 18 months to 2 years for full recovery with the skin grafting.

I was working 6 and 7 days a week when my crash happened. I had also just started my own residential cleaning business. I even got the business license for it. I have no more income other than what my husband brings in from work. It's not enough. He is a beloved music teacher at Oxford House of Music in Oxford, MS. He's the co-owner and has been for close to 20 years. His rent on the shop goes up yearly now as of 2 years ago. So, there's already added pressure from that alone. We are having a really hard time "catching up". My husband works so hard to carry this weight and he is buckling. And I can't do anything to help generate income. We do not qualify for foodstamps. I was denied Medicaid. The car I crashed was covered with only liability insurance. There's no financial compensation for any of that.

I was accepted for 6 months of financial aid thru Regional One Health hospital in Memphis, TN and Baptist Memorial Hospital in Oxford, MS. Thank God!!! Because I do not have health insurance. This help ends March 5, 2026. Most of those hospital charges have been covered by the charity program, but not all. I will need to reapply for the charity program in March in hopes of being accepted, to continue with check-ups and surgeries on my eye lids and filler for my face. There's a chance I have traumatic glaucoma, which could lead to more surgeries down the line.

My first 4 day stay at Regional One Health in Memphis was $81k. That bill has been cleared by the charity program. Praise God! But. It di not cover the physician fees and anesthesiology. With the charity program, I only pay a small copay per service and surgery.

• Anesthesia bill — $7,000.

• I was also approved for the hardship program with Med-Trans (my helicopter ride). That bill went from $70, 000 to little over $3,000.

• $6,000 for the ambulance ride that is not covered with the charity programs.

• There's about $2,500 for other costs with Baptist Memorial that were not included in the charity program.

• $13,000 owed to University of Tennessee physicians with Regional One in Memphis that the charity program does not cover.

It's an unfathomable amount. I'm sure I'm forgetting something. I'm trying my best to get these cost down as low as possible for when they do make it to the debt collectors, where I will then be able to make payments to keep from being sued or filing bankruptcy. I would have to pay a minimum of $5k a month for the collective bills or the hospital will sell it debt collection agencies. It's inevitable.

Not to mention, the oral surgeon's that did my first complex closure surgery in Memphis, TN are separate from Regional One Health. They are contracted. Their bill is $3,000.

Initially, they were the only ones willing to take me on and save my life instead of me laying there to die. To which I actually did die while in the trauma unit right before these student doctors came to my aid. God brought me back before the trauma unit made it to me with them electrical pads. I woke up gasping for air while my nurse sat at my right side holding my hand, crying and praying for me. I watched so many medical people come in and walk out, not confident in saving me or simply wanting to look at me given my circumstances and the fact that I should have died. I remember seeing 6 of the oral surgeons from Dunn Dental surrounding me, telling me they were about to do their best to keep me alive. And they did!

Everyone in the trauma unit watched me with full astonishment. I was so happy to be alive. There was a joy that I had, that was not of this world. I had peace in acceptance. This peace filled me the moment I realized I was crashing and stayed with me for a long time. This joy carried over and kept me alive. I still have this joy to this day. I laid there with my face blown completely off, yet I still smiled.

Tho much has been taken from me, I am still blessed because of the the breath of life in my lungs. I can still walk and talk. I can feed myself. I did not suffer spinal injuries or brain damage (well..kinda with nerve damage). I'm not on life support. I get to wake up everyday to see my child and my husband's face, hug them and tell them I love them. I get to wake up. Period.