TEAM HERMAN!! Bartram Family Needs Your Help!

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Dear Community,

On Tuesday, January 17, 2023, my best friend, Erin Bartram, was in a life-halting car accident. Starting her busy day like every other, Erin loaded her 14yr old daughter, Adia, and their two beloved family dogs, Herman and Howard, into the car to drive Adia to school and subsequently head to work. But this day didn’t go as usual. Halfway to the school, on Rough and Ready Hwy, their car hit black ice. Despite Erin’s impeccably careful driving and decreased speeds to accommodate the morning’s icy conditions, they found themselves suddenly sideways, careening into a telephone pole, and then, in an instant flipped the car over, onto the driver’s side. All in a moment they found themselves stopped, sideways in a ditch, Adia dangling precariously over her mom. Adia, accredited with calm and quick thinking, immediately assessed her own well-being and made efficient efforts to exit the vehicle. It was then she recognized their beloved older chocolate lab, Herman, was whimpering in the back end of the car. Erin clamored her way out of her seat and to the back of the car to find Herman pinned, halfway ejected from the rear side window. Crawling out of the window that was now above her, Erin dropped down into the mud, kneeling at Herman’s side, desperately trying to calm him and free him from his precarious position under the car. An angel named Ryan was driving his three children to school that morning and witnessed the event. Pulling over and approaching the scene, Ryan recognized the situation with the dog and acted quickly to turn the car off and with great strength to lift the car slightly away from Herman. Having just a brief moment, Erin had

the inch she needed to release and pull her beloved boy from the crushing weight. Hermon was unable to get up and walk, and the family feared the worst. First responders hit the scene with expediency and began their assessment of Erin and Adia. Unbelievably, Adia was completely unscathed, while Erin had some minor dings including a small scalp laceration, a shallow puncture to her hand, and what promised to be a pretty colorful shiner on her right eye. Their little dog, Howard, also bounced about like a rubber ball and came out none the worse for wear. But Herman was another story. He lay whimpering next to Erin alongside the ditch as Erin did her best to soothe and comfort him through her own panic. Another angel bystander offered to take Adia and the dogs to the emergency vet while Erin was left with first responders on scene. By the time I heard of the accident and arrived, I found my sweet friend sitting in the back of a CHP squad car to stay warm. She was near hysterical over the event. She was completely covered in mud and blood (well, just a little from the head lac) and tears. Her frantic sobbing made me cry for her and all the trauma she was feeling in that moment. The scene itself shook me as I saw personal belongings strewn across the road and in the ditch, and her loved and trusted older Nissan Pathfinder totaled, with all windows smashed out. I felt all the fear and panic and desperation in her clutching hug and desperate sobs. By then, the paramedics had cleared her and allowed me to take her to Adia and the dogs at Motherlode Veterinarian Hospital, where Herman was already in surgery. The staff and facilities at Motherlode were top quality professional! They held space for Erin to grieve the moment and comforted her, assuring her that Herman would indeed be ok. There was no injury to his spine.

However, he had a severely dislocated hip and a long and severe laceration to his soft underbelly which was sewn up. Adia and I took care to comfort and support Erin through the hours during surgery. Herman came through surgery without complication and was taken home where he could be nurtured back to health. It will be a long road for him, but his recovery will be made certain through the care and compassion that his people will provide.

Erin is a remarkable woman. She is one of the strongest women I have ever been able to know and I am proud to call her my best friend. She is a single mom to a teenage girl, and to this, she devotes her life. Nothing takes precedence in her life over her love and support of her daughter. In close second place is her fierce and compassionate love for animals. These two come together in her work. She works full-time, and she works hard to give her girl security, comfort and joy in life. She does this through her self-initiated business of working with animals. Though my little pixie friend weighs about the same as a load of wet laundry, she holds respect and gentleness from the animals she works with, from grumpy housecats to horses many times her size. Her deep heart grieves any pain or mistreatment to any animal and she is an advocate for all creatures. Her Herman is her family, protector and best friend. The pain I witness on her face as she soothes him and cares for him in his healing state is a testament to the place he holds in the family. She will do whatever it takes to make sure he heals fully and suffers minimally. She has vowed not to leave his side until he has regained the strength to stand and walk on his own. For now, she is home 24/7 to give him that care. 

While we marvel and rejoice that Both Erin and Adia, as well as little Howard, came out of this physically unharmed, and Herman will walk the road of healing, still there is damage done to this family. The emotional and financial retributions of this event are what we now aim to heal. Emotionally, Erin suffered a trauma. She has never been in a vehicle accident before and is constantly hit with waves of terror and emotion over that morning. Nightmares and visions of the accident involving her most precious cargo continue to haunt her. Adia has been a solid force through all of this, but no doubt underlying stress and anxiety will imprint on her nervous system. They have the help and support they need to work through these invisible wounds. So that brings us to what they don’t have the support to heal on their own, and how you can help.

The financial burdens of that fateful morning are somewhat devastating to this family. As I’ve stated, Erin is a single mom and works full-time. She works so hard to keep life running smoothly, but any hiccup in that routine has the potential for great setback. Many of us understand the precarious lifestyle of living paycheck to paycheck. Any small occurrence can be a serious setback and this event is testament to that. Erin has already lost a week of income due to having to stay home with Herman as he regains his strength and independence. That’s already 25% of needed income to keep the household flowing and there will be more work time lost. But an even more calamitous result of this story is the emergency vet bill. Anyone with pets knows how quickly a visit to the vet can add up. You can imagine the expense an emergency surgery and follow-up care could amass. Also, the towing fees that had immediate impact the day of the accident. In the chaos of the moment,

two tow trucks were ordered by CHP. Those trucks, and storage fee for only a day was $1100. Both expenses were costly yet inescapable and not covered by Erin’s liability insurance that she held for the older 2000 Nissan Pathfinder. Additional, unplanned costs came from medical supplies and in-home care supplies to support Herman’s recovery. This family took a massive hit that day. Erin is rising to the occasion to get her life back on track and I have no doubt she’ll do just that. There are consequences of this unfortunate affair that I feel helpless to support. But one way we can all help this beautiful family to get back to thrive is to go within our hearts and see what we can give to soften the blow. If you feel you can share some of your abundance to let Erin and Adia know their community truly does care, please make your donation here. Give what you can, and share this link on your own page or any other social outlet that you have. Even if you only have $5 to share, it will mean more than a number. It will show that there is humanity and community within. Any words of encouragement and love are equally valued. I thank you for taking the time to read this and consider how you could make a difference for this family. Much love to you all!