Help Bring Kerrie Home

Owner of SKOL CrossFit

Kerrie Gustavson Olsen went to Puerto Vallarta with her husband Paul and friends for what was supposed to be a fun getaway. Instead, a golf cart accident left her with a severe traumatic brain injury. There is a subdural hematoma with up to 16mm of bleeding around her brain, and the pressure has shifted her brain 7mm to the left. She was rushed to the hospital unconscious, and went straight into emergency brain surgery. That surgery saved her life.

She is still in the ICU in Mexico, on a ventilator, in a medically induced coma while doctors work to stabilize her. Hospitals in Mexico operate differently than what we are used to here — Paul is only allowed in the room with her one to two hours a day. The rest of the time, he stands outside her door, watching her through the window. Family is doing everything they can from every angle to get her home.

If you know Kerrie, none of this needs explaining.

Years ago she took over a small CrossFit gym in Riverton, Utah and built it into SKOL — and SKOL is not really a gym. Anyone who has walked through those doors knows that. It's a family. It's a community. It's a place people go because it's where they feel most like themselves.

Kerrie knows every member by name. She knows their kids. She knows what they are going through outside the gym walls, and she shows up for them in ways most gym owners never would. She celebrates their PRs harder than they do. She notices when someone goes quiet and reaches out. She has built something that runs on real love for the people in it.

SKOL thrives because of her. This community exists because of her.

Anyone who has been part of a CrossFit box knows how rare a leader like Kerrie is. She makes the methodology actually mean what it's supposed to mean — fitness, yes, but also belonging, grit, and showing up for each other. SKOL is proof of that every single day.

And then there is Paul. Paul is who allows Kerrie to be Kerrie every single day. He is her rock. He is the steady ground underneath everything she does. He is who makes her feel safe. He is who keeps her centered. Watching them together, you understand exactly why she shines the way she does. So much of that is him.

The reality of what this family is facing is hard to wrap your head around.

Because the accident happened in Mexico, the hospital requires payment upfront, in cash, and the costs are running tens of thousands of dollars a day. They have insurance, but international claims take time to process and reimbursement is delayed, which means everything has to be covered out of pocket right now while they fight to get her stable. Getting her home will require a critical care medevac flight with a full ICU team on board, and that alone is an enormous cost the family is working to arrange as quickly as possible. Once she is home, there is still continued hospitalization, rehab, follow-up care, and a long road of recovery for both Kerrie and Paul.

It is a lot. It is a lot for any family, let alone one navigating the scariest days of their lives at the same time.

A note on the goal: GoFundMe shows an automated goal that will keep adjusting upward as donations come in, but we want to be transparent with everyone showing up here — our real goal is $500,000. That number reflects what this family is actually facing between hospital costs in Mexico, the medevac flight home, ongoing ICU and hospital care once she lands, rehab, and the long recovery ahead. Every dollar gets her closer to home and gives this family the room to focus on Kerrie instead of the bills. It is a lot. It is a lot for any family, let alone one navigating the scariest days of their lives at the same time.

How you can help:

The CrossFit community has always been about showing up for each other when it matters. This is one of those moments. Kerrie has spent years pouring into hers. Now we are asking ours to pour back.

We will keep posting updates as we get them. Thank you for showing up for Kerrie and Paul the way she has always shown up for everyone else.