On Sunday, June 9th, my partner Kerr and I were walking home from a screening at around 10PM when Kerr was randomly attacked by a passing stranger. It was a nonsensical and frightening moment of violence: Kerr appeared shaken up but mostly fine the rest of the night, but woke up with symptoms of a concussion and whiplash: nausea, dizziness, vomiting, and intense neck/shoulder/back pain on the side that she was struck. We have since consulted with a doctor, who has warned of a moderate-to-severe concussion. Since this diagnosis, she has been struggling with speech, has an extreme sensitivity to light and noise, and debilitating head and muscle pain.

Head trauma is complex, and unfortunately takes a long time to recover from. It isn’t Kerr’s first concussion, which makes the recovery period even more crucial, as the steps taken now will affect whether or not there will be irreversible long-term effects from the attack.

Kerr is unable to work during this time due to the pain: her work in film and animation is predominantly screen-based, something that is directly at odds with her recovery from this injury. As a self-employed worker, she is uninsured, and though we are in the process of applying for support through the Crime Victim’s Assistance Program, the timeline and amount of aid she will qualify for is unclear.

We are hoping to raise 8000 dollars to cover rent, groceries, HRT, costs of physiotherapy and counselling for Kerr for the next two months.

Kerr is a generous, loving, and special person, and someone very dear to her community. Help us get her the care that she needs to make a full recovery ❤️