Support Hilary Billington's Road to Recovery

Dear Friends of Hilary,

As many of you know, Hilary suffered an LAD arterial heart attack on December 2 while visiting family in Connecticut. Hard to imagine that happening to Hilary, but thankfully Shaw and Scott provided quick and crucial CPR within seconds. Emergency services arrived within minutes, and she was brought to Norwalk Hospital where she immediately underwent heart surgery.

All in, Hilary endured over 35 minutes of CPR, fighting a condition that only 12% of patients survive. The heart attack was caused by Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection (SCAD). This can happen to roughly 1 in 100,000 women, and there is no known cause and no warning. Her heart is now stable; the doctors inserted a 3mm x 4cm long stent in the LAD artery, which had ruptured.

Following the heart attack, Hilary spent several days on life support in the Norwalk ICU. As she was brought off a ventilator, it was clear that she had serious injuries to her chest area from all of the CPR. She underwent an initial surgery in Norwalk to repair those injuries, but it was unsuccessful. So after a week in the Norwalk ICU, she was moved to a second hospital with a cardio-thorasic specialist where she underwent a major surgery to repair multiple broken ribs and a fractured sternum. Her lungs are still collapsed, and breathing with her chest injuries is excruciating. As of December 21st, she has now spent 19 days and counting in intensive care.

She remains in critical condition but has an excellent care team, is surrounded by family, and her prognosis is turning for the better.

We all know how tough Hilary is. And how strong her will is. That she survived is miraculous, and she’s starting to show signs of improvement.

Hilary’s road to recovery will be long, but the love, support and connection to her friends and community will see her through. The doctors have made it clear that it could be weeks before we have clarity on the path forward, and that it will likely be "a marathon". Please visit The Caring Bridge for the most recent updates on Hilary's journey.

We can all help. We’ve set up this Go Fund Me account to contribute to her recovery. All donations will go directly to Hilary to offset expenses for medical care (surgeries, ICU, hospitals, rehab, etc), cognitive care, plus the physical and emotional therapy for Hilary and her family in the months to come.

Please consider giving generously to support Hilary… a dear friend, coach, mom, rider, athlete and wonderful human being.

Thank you!