Help Coach Dara Rebuild Her Life After a Devastating Spinal Cord Injury

Updates

As Coah Dara was learning to adapt to life as a paraplegic, another major setback occurred. Her surgical wound experienced complications and took more than three months to heal. During this time, she endured repeated treatments, limited mobility, physical pain, and emotional hardship. The prolonged recovery delayed her rehabilitation and made an already difficult situation even more challenging.

Today, Coach Dara is focused on healing, rehabilitation, and learning how to live independently with paraplegia. Every day involves learning new skills, adapting to new routines, and building the strength needed to move forward. While her future remains uncertain, one thing has never changed: her determination.

Coach Dara dreams of returning to the badminton community she loves. She hopes that one day she will once again coach students, not only teaching badminton skills but also sharing her own story of resilience, courage, and perseverance. She wants to inspire others by showing that even after life's most devastating setbacks, it is still possible to find purpose, hope, and strength.

However, the road ahead is long and expensive.

To safely transition into her new life and gain as much independence as possible, Coach Dara urgently needs:

• A power wheelchair to provide safe and independent mobility

• Powered mobility equipment, including a patient lifter and transfer devices to help with daily movement and reduce the risk of injury

• An electric hospital bed to assist with positioning, wound prevention, comfort, and safe transfers

• Relocation to a wheelchair-accessible home and assistance with rental costs, as her current living situation is not fully suitable for wheelchair use

• Ongoing rehabilitation and therapy

• Professional caregiver assistance at least twice daily to help with personal care, transfers, and other essential daily activities

• Transportation to medical appointments and rehabilitation sessions

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Please support our coach as she navigates the challenges of a new life as a paraplegic.

A message from her students:

Dara is a former Indonesian Badminton women’s doubles national player and has decades of coaching experience. She is a valued and cherished coach at our club for the past six years, and she urgently needs your help. Throughout her coaching career, Dara has celebrated various achievements with the teams and athletes she coached, but for many in the badminton community, Dara has been more than just a coach.

From Jason, a student since 2020:

“I’ve trained under Coach Dara from the day she started at Shuttlesport. I was in her very first group. She didn’t just want us to succeed as badminton players. She wanted us to grow as individuals.”

From Malina, a student since 2022:

“For Dara, you did not have to be the best player. You just had to be willing to try. She was someone who was there for me, not just as a coach, but as a friend.”

From William, a student since 2020:

“Coach Dara has had a huge impact on me. Her passion for badminton and dedication to her athletes is something I’ve always admired. She cares deeply about every player she works with.”

Read the full tributes here

Her positive mindset and coaching values were what she brought everyday to Shuttlesport as a Senior Coach and Head Professional. Every day, every week was spent at the club working with players. Whenever we were there, she was there to welcome us. There were truly no days off for her, but despite long days, she has never let that impact how she showed up to her job. She was often the first to to be at the club in the mornings, and one of the last to leave in the evening. By 2024, her outstanding efforts were recognized when she was awarded the 2024 Competition Coach of the Year for coaches in B.C.

She would also go on to win a gold medal for the BC Winter Games in 2024, and coached players who medaled both provincially, and nationally. But for Dara, coaching was never about only winning medals. It has always been about helping the younger generation like us to develop confidence, resilience, and character through sport.

A Sudden Life-Changing Moment

Today, Coach Dara is facing the toughest challenge of her own life.

Dara’s life changed dramatically when she fell three times in the span of a month before being diagnosed with a severe spinal cord injury, which required an emergency surgery known as a Posterior Thoracic Laminectomy. The surgery did not go as planned, and left her paralyzed from the waist down, changing her life overnight. She is now facing the difficult reality of living as a paraplegic, navigating daily challenges that affect mobility, independence, and basic daily life activities.

One Final Call

She needs us. At this time, Coach Dara has no income. Her recovery and adjustment to life as a paraplegic require her full attention, and she is not yet able to return to work. While she remains hopeful that future employment opportunities will arise, the timeline is uncertain. Until then, the costs of medical care, rehabilitation, accessible housing, mobility equipment, caregiving support, and daily living expenses continue to grow.

We are reaching out to friends, family, fellow athletes, students, and compassionate supporters to help Coach Dara through this difficult chapter. Every donation, no matter the amount, will directly contribute to the equipment, care, and support she needs to rebuild her life with dignity and independence.

Coach Dara has been a significant part of our lives and the badminton community, and we hope that we can give back to someone who has given us more than we could’ve ever asked for. She supported us during our hardest times. Now, it’s our turn to return the favor.

If you are unable to donate, please consider sharing her story. Your support, encouragement, and prayers mean more than words can express.

Thank you for standing with Coach Dara on her journey toward recovery, independence, and hope.

Together, we can bring Coach Dara back to the court.

Love,

The Shuttlesport Community