Help Kirsten Walk Again

On Sunday August 6th at about 2:30 in the afternoon we were hiking as a family in Tanque Verde falls.  Enjoying the many pools that have formed as a result of the monsoon rains.  Kirsten slipped and fell 20 feet onto a very large boulder before ending up on the water another 7 feet below that.  Kirsten suffered major injuries to her left leg.  She shattered her Tibia and Fibula, with over 10 fractures in and below the knee, 3 of which are "open fractures" meaning that the bone fragments were sticking out through the skin.  She also suffered 5 breaks in her foot, with many of the fractures being severley displaced.  We held Kirsten in the water, trying to hold her still as any movement amplified her already excruciating pain.  We held her there for over an hour waiting for rescue. When the helicopter was finally able to find us we were able to, with help from the EMT's and the search and rescue team, pull her from the water.  Kirsten was airlifted out of the canyon and rushed to UMC Trauma center.  Kirsten will need 4 or 5 surgeries to repair the leg. Doctors are fighting infection and bacteria introduced into her body while being in the water for so long with the open wounds. She will require in home health care after leaving the hopital, as she will need to be on IV antibiotics for 2 weeks. She will be in a wheelchair for at least 4 months, not able to put any weight on her leg, doctors believe that it will be close to a year before she will be able to walk again, and 2 to 3 years more for her to be able to walk with only a slight degree of pain.  She is not expected to ever be able to walk normally again.  These funds will help to cover the mounting medical expenses, Co-pays, deductibles, wheel chair, walker, physical therapy, the in home health care, a small wheel chair ramp to get over the one step in our garage, and countless expenses for medications, wraps etc.  We appreciate any help you can give, as it is very humbling to admit that we need help but the urgent nature of the situation has left us scrambling and panicked.  Your whole life can be flipped upside down in an instant, and we are asking for you help to alleviate some of the stress and allow us to focus more energy on her healing.