Support Barbara Bernardo's Road to Recovery

My name is Katherine Heidelman. I have been friends with Barbara Bernardo for over 25 years. This fundraiser is approved by Barbara. All donations made will go directly to her for her exorbitant medical bills, and to cover her monthly “normal” expenses as she begins her very long road to recovery.

Barbara was in a horrible accident approximately 3 weeks ago while she was in California. Barb was in California for a celebration of life for a dear friend who was taken too soon. Paul, a friend from high school reached out to ask Barb to meet for appetizers on Friday before the planned birthday celebration for Saturday. Barb and Paul were walking to the restaurant and were at the crosswalk of Via Lido and Newport Blvd in Newport Beach. They still had ample time to cross the street when they were hit by a person driving a Jeep, who did not have the right a way. Barb suffered massive multiple injuries including 11 broken ribs, a broken arm, her right leg is fractured and her left leg was “shattered”. It is a miracle that it is that she is alive and we are all so grateful for that. She has been in the trauma hospital in Orange County, CA for 3 weeks. She has had multiple surgeries and she has a very very long road ahead to recovery.

A Caring Bridge has been set up, which has been instrumental in these early days to communicate updates. The hard reality is this, Barbs injuries are much worse than what we know from the updates. The battle she has ahead to get back to some semblance of normal is long and unpredictable.

Barbara’s niece Kirsten has been advocating very hard to lay the foundation to get Barb back to Colorado where she can focus on recovery. Kirsten has also been an anchor for Alexa and supporting her through this. Barb is now a few days away from being flown home to Colorado, where she will be in a rehabilitation facility to help her get the support and care she needs and to help quite literally get her on her feet again. She is unable to bear weight on either of her legs for at least 3 more weeks, at which time they will determine her physical therapy to get her walking again. To say she is excited to be going back home is an understatement. She needs to be close to Alexa.

Barbara is the friend who does anything and everything for everybody. She is the kind of friend that you would call if something like this happened to you and she would drop everything to support you. She is so considerate and kind and also fiercely independent. This type of traumatic accident has costs associated that one can never be prepared for. Insurance will cover some of these bills, but many bills that it won’t. In addition to the new mounting medical bills, Barbara’s income has essentially been shut off. She is an independent contractor, and her livelihood depends on her ability to drive. Because she is a contractor, she doesn’t have income if she isn’t working. She will not be driving for quite some time.

To alleviate her anxiety and allow her to focus on her recovery, we have set up this GoFundMe.

Barbara has a huge village and if we all work together to support her, she can rest a bit easier knowing her normal bills can be paid. This will allow her to focus on her recovery and parenting Alexa while putting her life back together. Your generosity and support are appreciated more than you will ever know.