Karen was involved in a serious collision while traveling alone in Chicago on July 12th. She was standing behind her parked rental car and in front of a parked SUV when a car traveling at a high rate of speed came around the corner, slammed into her rental, pushed it out of the way and then slammed into Karen crushing her between both vehicles. She suffered at least four breaks in her right leg, a severely damaged right ankle and foot. At first, doctors didn’t think they could save the foot, but recently decided that she could keep it, though doing so means she'll deal with damaged tendons and skin grafts.  She also suffered a fractured left pelvis near the spinal column and a damaged left hip. So far, she has had almost 10 surgeries and is currently waiting the surgeons' okays to release her to a rehab hospital also in Chicago.

Remarkably, Karen has been in good spirits. Her only concern so far has been the care of her two cats Sam & CeCe. Fortunately, friends have been able to take turns visiting her home, caring for the cats  and assuring her "kids" that "mom" will eventually be home.

Medical bills are beginning to come in and how she will pay for these is not something Karen needs to be worried about at this time. She is an 8th grade Algebra teacher in Reno, Nevada and will not be able to work during this fall semester. (Whether she is able to work in the spring semester will be determined later). While medical insurance will help pay for some of the medical bills, there are still many other out-of-pocket expenses which it will not cover including modifying her home to be wheelchair accessible, transportation fees of getting her back to Reno and into a second rehab center once she's there. 

While these costs, including copays and deductibles should be paid for by the responsible parties' insurance, that is a big question mark and likely a legal battle. Karen is facing the likelihood that she will be left financially responsible for all these out-of-pocket expenses.

Please consider making a donation. Doing so will provide healing help for Karen so that she can get back to a normal life, including her beloved hiking and cycling.