Hello, my name is Janna Thornhill, a cousin to Jennifer Force. Most know her as Jenni.

Jenni recently spent time in the hospital and was then moved to rehab for an infected diabetic wound on her foot that then led to sepsis. She is lucky to have not lost her foot, but more importantly, we are all lucky that she did not lose her life.

Jenni has been a bright light in my life since the day I was born. She is much more than a cousin; she is my sister at heart. Since both of us have lost our mothers, our best friends, it has brought us closer than we were before.

As you can imagine, Jenni and her husband, Brian, have missed quite a bit of work while she was admitted to hospitals and, subsequently, for the doctor's appointments and physical therapy that have come after.

On top of missed work, the medical bills are starting to mount, and this is why we are needing help. The Force family will use this money to pay the medical bills they receive, as well as supplementing their income to ensure they are able to pay their necessary monthly expenditures until Jenni is cleared to return to work and Brian can resume his normal work schedule.

Jenni’s husband, Brian, wrote the below to explain in detail what happened and what is expected in the future:

My wife, Jenni, has been facing serious health issues due to a severe diabetic wound on the back of her right foot, which then led to sepsis. She was hospitalized for 11 days, followed by another 11 days in a rehabilitation hospital.

So far, she’s undergone two surgeries and will need at least one more, possibly two, one being a skin graft and another procedure to reattach her Achilles tendon.

The first surgery was to remove dead tissue and skin that was infected, and they had to remove quite a bit in her heel area. The second surgery was needed to shave off some of her bone and detach her Achilles tendon because that area was also infected.

During her hospital stay, Jenni had to have a blood transfusion because of sepsis and anemia.

We came very close to losing Jenni due to sepsis. Her infectious disease specialist told us that if we’d waited 12 to 24 more hours to bring her to the ER, she likely would have passed.

Jenni has a long road ahead in her recovery. I have become her caregiver, with our son Ethan contributing as much as he can, helping her navigate daily life and rehab safely. She’s currently in a wheelchair as she can’t put any weight on her right foot at all.

She has a Wound Vac on her foot to promote healing and tissue growth. Jenni’s Wound Vac dressings have to be changed three times a week and require expertise for proper application, so we also have to have a wound care nurse come to our home twice a week to change the dressing, with the third being done at the foot specialist.

We’re going to at least two doctor’s appointments each week, one with the foot specialist, and another with her infectious disease specialist, who does blood tests every week to see if everything is looking okay and her organs are functioning properly. Jenni has a PICC line so that we can administer IV antibiotics every day, and a nurse at the infectious disease clinic changes the PICC line dressing every week as well.

Jenni will remain on IV antibiotics due to the sepsis until her wound fully closes, but there’s still no timeline for that or for her next surgeries. Sepsis will continue to be a risk until the wound is closed. The size of the wound is still substantial, which is why she may need a skin graft surgery.

This journey has already brought significant medical expenses and lost income for both Jenni and me, and that will continue for the foreseeable future because of the remaining surgeries, multiple weekly doctor’s appointments, home wound care, and physical therapy. She most likely will also need to see a therapist soon due to Post Sepsis Syndrome (PSS).

We are hoping to get Jenni back to living her life as close to normal as possible, but the journey to that point will be difficult. Sepsis/PSS will likely be an issue for at least 6 to 18 months, and possibly years or even her entire life. The risk for infection and sepsis is higher after you’ve already had it.

Asking for monetary help is never easy. Unfortunately, the medical bills continue to mount, and there are more surgeries, therapy, and possible sepsis issues/therapy on the horizon. The amount of work both Jenni and I have missed, and are going to miss in the future, is significant.

If you're able to donate, we would be incredibly grateful for your support. Please also consider sharing Jenni’s story if that is something you’re comfortable with. Your generosity means the world to us. Thank you so much!