Kali Rae Duvauchelle and Kodak Duvauchelle

On 2/17/23, Kali went on a walk with her husband Iokepa and their dog Kodak. The three of them went on this walk every day after work.

While on the walk, Kali and Kodak were hit and run over. The driver continued to drive with Kali and Kodak being dragged across the road. Iokepa ran after the car, motioning to the driver to stop. Io held Kali and Kodak's shattered bodies until emergency services arrived. Kali was rushed to Queens Medical Center, where she remains in critical condition.

Kali and Kodak have both sustained severe injuries and Kali is currently fighting for her life. Kali has multiple skull fractures, skull laceration, scattered hemorrhages, brain swelling, pelvis fracture, lumbar fracture, femur fracture, multiple broken ribs, partial collapsed lung, abrasions all over the body and is currently on a ventilator. Kodak has a collapsed lung with multiple rib fractures and a broken femoral head.

If you have ever met Kali, you know that she is the kindest, most positive person. Her energy can light up any room. Even amid her injuries, Kali is fighting and keeping a positive light.

We are asking for financial help with both Kali and Kodak's medical bills that are not covered by insurance, legal expenses, and the many financial burdens that we are experiencing at this time. Anything helps. We ask that you keep both Kali and Kodak in your deepest thoughts and prayers. Mahalo Nui Loa!

If you want to stay updated with Kali and Kodak's progress, the family will provide an update here daily.

2/18 Update:

Hi! So we finally got to be with Kali a bit today. She was stable enough for visitors in between surgeries. She is still fully sedated and intubated and will be for a while until they can finish all her necessary surgeries. Today she had a successful surgery where they put a metal bar in her femur to stop the bleeding hemorrhage. She had a slight complication with oxygen but ultimately pulled through. Tomorrow she is scheduled to repair the fracture in her pelvis, but all will be on hold until they can confirm the surgery. Her brain swelling has not increased but still will be monitored We all love Kali so much and appreciate all of your help, love and support with her recovery ❤️‍

2/19 Update:

Kali had a very successful pelvic surgery today. What should’ve taken 5 hours took only 3 hours, which tells us that Kali is fighting and her body is receiving the surgeries well. Originally they thought they would have to put screws externally in her hip, but we’re able to put everything internally instead.

She also finally was able to get her MRI done to check on her spine. Tomorrow is the day we will get the results on the severity of her spine and see whether she needs to get her lumbar spine fused which is not ideal for mobility.

Kodak was cleared for surgery today and will be going under surgery for his hip. They will be removing his femoral head but the procedure is something that will allow him to still move around and walk.

Still got a long road ahead but this was great news!!

2/20 Update:

Kali had one of her biggest and longest surgeries today. The doctors worked on her spine. She experienced an L1 burst that left bone debris and ultimately required the vertebrae to be fused. While there was a lot of pressure on her spinal cord, there was less damage than anticipated to the cord and The Drs performed a successful surgery.

While in surgery, they were FINALLY able to turn Kali and see her backside. She has a lot of surface-level abrasions that the medical team was finally able to clean up.

There was some slight brain bleeding and pressure that required the Doctors to implant a monitoring device on her head. She has since then been stable.

Because the spine was fixed today, they were able to remove her from her neck brace, which is awesome.

All in all it was a good day and we are hopeful that she will be waking up soon.

Kodak will be going into surgery tomorrow where he will have his femoral head and neck removed. This surgery is highly successful and they expect him to be able to walk and move on it by tomorrow!

2/21 Update:

Hi Hi! We are done with all the big surgeries and had a follow-up with the spinal doctor today who said that everything seems to be looking good. They did a few motor exams and saw some leg and arm movements, which is great news.

We also had a meeting with her respiratory therapist that Kali will continue to stay on the ventilator, but that they would eventually like to have her slowly begin to breathe on her own.

She has slowly been moved off of her heavy sedation. She still is coming off of three major surgeries that required general anesthesia, but the slow weaning off is a sign we are headed in the right direction.

Kali also received a feeding tube today to begin supplying her back with some nutrients. All in all for Kali it was the first day she was not in the operating room, which is a sign that we are processing forward.

Speaking of the operating room, Kodak received his surgery today and he crushed it! The doctor removed his femoral head and any debris of broken bones. He can officially transition home as of tomorrow where he will begin his rehabilitation program with Grandma Cheryl. We can tell he is eager to head home and we are happy to have him there

2/22 Update:

Hey Hey! Today we brought Kodak home! He was officially cleared for release and Aunty Ipo and Aunty Zabs brought him back to his house where he will begin recovery. He is in quite a lot of pain but he is a champ and peeing all on his own. His recovery is highly dependent on his exercising and walking daily. We plan to entice him with lots of treats for being such a good boy.

Kali had some surprising news. We had assumed we were done with most of the big surgeries but were informed today that she had not fully completed her pelvic surgery. The reason that 5-6 hour surgery only took 3 hours, was due to them only accomplishing the back portion of the pelvic repair. Kali will receive a pelvic plate that will be inserted with 6 screws to the front.

Upon further review, they also noticed she had a hairline fracture to her tibia which is the bone that holds up her knee. The surgeons plan to take care of both tomorrows. We are praying that this will serve as the final major surgery.

Overall she is doing well. She is under careful watch to make sure that her vitals are stable and that she has no infections. So far, so good.

Today we (Io, Connie, Cassidy, Cheryl, Ipo and Zabrina) received some information on how to approach Kali’s transition when she inevitably discharges from ICU. It is highly important to all of us that we stay well-informed to give Kali the best care possible.

She is a fighter and every day we are so grateful for her life!

2/23 and 2/24 Update:

We decided to combine the update because the last two days have been quite a rollercoaster of emotions.

2/23 was more or less a rest day for Kali. Her surgery was postponed and the day was spent chatting with her neuro team. The doctors gave us the good, the bad, and the ugly -- preparing the family for any possibilities. They informed us that her current state was not exactly where they would like to see her and that more than likely she is in a coma-like state. It was a punch to the gut for all of us. The doctors also, slowly weened Kali off of her heavy pain medicines, which left her slightly irritable (totally understandable!), so everyone packed up early and let our girl rest.

Kali must've heard the doctors give us their report because on 2/24 she let us know that she was very much still present. While her motor functions were not 100%, Kali showed signs of motor responding to pain, eye tracking, and even a hand squeeze on command. All great signs! They were able to remove the bolt in her head that tracked her pressure and transition her to an EEG monitor, where the neuro team is closely monitoring her brain activity.

Kali also had what we are praying will be her final surgery. The team fixed the front of her pelvis and broken tibia. Another long surgery that Kali finished in about half the time. She also managed to do it with minimal bleeding.

Kodak had a few good wins in the last few days as well. He has fully made his transition home and is under the watchful eye of his aunties. He was able to withstand a few short walks throughout the day, where he put pressure on his recovering leg. He even had a healthy bowel movement!

We can't say for sure what the next few days will look like for Kali, but we are so thankful for the miracle that is her life. She fights every day and reminds us that she is strong because she chooses strength.

2/25 and 2/26 Update

Another combined update for Kali’s progress

2/25 KALI IS AWAKE and when we walked into the room she recognized us and was alert and responding to commands on the upper extremities, which doctors were very pleased.

The bolt was removed and transitioned to an EEG, which monitored her brain for seizures and came back negative, which was also good news.

The central line was removed along with the blood vacuums.

All in all a great day.

2/26 Update

Kali’s ventilator tube was removed today and she was more alert with responding by nods and shaking of head. Trying to communicate verbal but her throat will be very sore for the next few days due to the ventilator. She had movement of both lower and upper extremities today.

Kali is making progress every day and has a long road ahead of her.

We, as a family appreciate the overwhelming love and support you have given us during this time. We have witnessed miracle after miracle and give all of the praise to the Lord who we know is the Great Physician.

2/28 Upate

Kali is still at Queens Medical Center in ICU. She will be transported to Kaiser ICU today or tomorrow. They are waiting for a bed to open up at Kaiser. She should have downgraded and graduated to a regular room yesterday, but for insurance reason they need to transfer ICU to ICU.

Kali is becoming more alert and looking better each day. She is trying to communicate, but her throat is still to sore for her to speak yet. She does whisper on occasion. She is still very weak, and of course, she is in some discomfort. But that is to be expected, and she is receiving pain medicine when necessary.

Kodak is doing so much better and going for walks several times every day.

Please continue to pray for Kali and Kodak for their continued healing. We are so thankful for all of your prayers and support and give God all the Glory for His miraculous intervention.