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<div>Greetings!
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<div>*As it turns out, I may very well be 10 foot tall, bulletproof, and made of steel after all!  No one, including myself, expected me to survive the massive ordeal I just went through. Admittedly, it literally took everything within me to pull myself out of it and choose life over death!
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<div><span style="font-family:inherit;font-size:1rem;color:inherit;">However...</span>
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<div><span style="font-family:inherit;font-size:1rem;color:inherit;">I'm still not out of this crisis yet. Please read on for the latest update and current situation which will require assistance for at least 6 more weeks. </span>
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<div>Thank you SO much for taking the time to read my story and for contributing to my fundraiser that I'm currently updating, editing, and reposting due to the financial aftermath caused by the six-month-long medical crisis I've recently experienced.
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<div>For those who may not know me or my story, I'm Sundance, (aka Virginia); a self-employed, professional certified farrier (horseshoer), animal communicator, whisperer and behavioral specialist with decades of experience. My passion and love for animals, especially for the (remaining) 14 beloved souls who call my mini ranch their forever home, is one of the main reasons I'm still alive today after recently having spent a total of 35 days (17 days in January and 18 days in February) in the hospital (literally) fighting for my life after a fungal infection tried to take me down (Sept. thru November of 2023) with pneumonia.
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<div>On Dec. 31st, due to the chronic nonstop coughing, the fungus finally succeeded in creating a hole/tear in my lung, causing it to repeatedly collapse while in the hospital, for a total of SIX times! (Four of the pneumothorax episodes were directly linked to medical incompetence!)
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<div>Even though I've been home for a little over three weeks, after six major surgeries, SIX chest tubes (three that were RIPPED out of my chest WITHOUT sedation or painkillers, two of which they pulled at the same time just a few hours before sending me home! OMG! You don't know pain until you've had this barbaric and torturous procedure done to you!); massive weight loss and muscle wasting, I was sent home with nine holes cut into my ribcage; I'm far from being recovered enough to safely return to work.
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<div>Throughout this journey, which has made it (nearly) impossible for me to work in the last six months, during my time in the hospital (since January), I've also lost four loved ones to death; three were extremely close family members, (my niece just died two weeks ago, only 12 hrs after I had a video chat with her!) and one was a very dear friend.
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<div>Despite all the literal HELL I've been going through, I assure you, I AM doing EVERYTHING in my power to heal my body, mind, heart, and soul so I can get back to work as quickly as possible. (On the second day home from the hospital, even though my neighbor was ready to handle everything for me, and I shouldn't have, I took over almost all ranch chores except blanketing the horses for the first week, just to rebuild my muscles and endurance.)
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<div>I honestly cannot heal fast enough, but running a ranch by one's self, makes it difficult to afford the downtime needed to properly heal. (There is NO such thing as "taking it easy" or "resting" up!) The doctors warned me not to pick up anything heavier than ten pounds- I looked them in the eye and said, "Seriously? You do realize I run a ranch by myself, right?" Since I'm the only human here, I have no choice but to take care of it all, no matter how bad I feel!
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<div>I'm at least another six weeks from being recovered enough to safely return to work on client's equines, and that's only if they're good. It's going to take time to not only strengthen my endurance and muscles, but now I need to rebuild my business too, since all of my clients were forced to hire other farriers and may not want to switch back to me.
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<div>My reserves from the earlier fundraising efforts have been exhausted. Two major vet bills in the past two weeks took a big chunk out of the reserves. Two days ago I had to have the vet out for Red Cloud's eye which had been injured and gotten infected. The other vet bill was for Bandit (my chihuahua) who had a swollen lymph node above his heart, causing excessive coughing. (That bill was nearly $400!)
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<div>Aside from the ranch itself, which is going back on the market this weekend, I've run out of things to sell. I've fallen behind on the mortgage and am teetering on the brink of foreclosure on top of it all. (As if I didn't have enough to deal with already!)
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<div>It costs roughly $5000 a month (with no extras) to keep this place going and everyone fed. It's been my home (and the critters', too!) for the past 17 years. Losing our home before I can sell it is NOT an option!
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<div>Thank you in advance for being a positive part of my story and for your generosity, compassion, and kindness! You ARE an invaluable component in helping to relieve the financial stress and are deeply appreciated by myself and my tribe of fur and feathered babies who depend on me to keep it together.
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<div>If I've learned nothing else from this experience, I've learned that I am not supposed to do all of this alone and to reach out and ask for help when I need it. There are a LOT of GREAT people in the world (most of them have already helped me out tremendously these past 3 months!) who I know would be happy to help if they knew about my story.
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<div>So, even if you aren't in a position to make a small donation, just by sharing my fundraiser with your friends and family, you can help me reach those who are in a position to help.
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<div>Please know that ANY amount WILL make a HUGE difference! (It ALL adds up!) If only 200 people donated $25 each per month for the next two months, I'll be able to land on my feet and overcome this nightmare with some semblance of grace!
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<div>All funds will go directly toward the food, care, and upkeep of the critters, (my #1 priority, after myself, now- something I never did before, which is how I got so damned sick in the first place!) as well as overhead and normal living expenses.
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<div>Thank you SO much!
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<div>Blessings and Love,
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<div>Sundance
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Hunter Davis

Anonymous

Valmira Mavraj

Anne Lantry

Melody Francis

Mary M Trausch

Brian Jansen

Uma Com

Nathan Stevens

Linda Monell

Danette Anderson

Debra Fenner

Penny Beach

Charlotte Dougherty

Gabrielle Shenberg

URGENT! SUNDANCE MEDICAL EMERGENCY RECOVERY FUND!

URGENT! SUNDANCE MEDICAL EMERGENCY RECOVERY FUND!

Still $15,295 to go. Help us build momentum.