My name is Crystal, and I am helping to raise funds for one of my best friends, Jamie Gonzalez Schulz.

Just a few weeks ago, my dear friend’s life changed in an instant. Jamie and I were doing our nails and hanging out on Super Bowl Sunday, and a short 5 days later, she was in critical condition in the ICU at a local hospital.

What began as pneumonia for Jamie quickly turned into something far more serious. The infection spread to her bloodstream, and she quickly became septic. Within hours, she was fighting for her life in the ICU — placed on a ventilator for eight long days, in critical condition. Her kidneys began to fail, and she required emergency hemodialysis as her family stood by, praying and hoping for a miracle.

Through strength, expert medical care, and sheer determination, she survived.

Today, she is slowly healing. But survival is only the first step in her long journey. After days on a ventilator and in critical care, her body is profoundly weak. She faces significant fatigue and muscle loss, and she will need many weeks in a rehabilitation facility before she is strong enough to return home. She will also require for the foreseeable future, medically necessary dialysis multiple times a week for kidney damage.

Jamie is a devoted mom to Tyler, a loving wife to Damian, a loyal friend to many, and a dedicated professional who serves as a national academic program director for a nursing school — helping organize and guide nursing students in their educational journey. Now, she needs our care and support.

As her family focuses on her recovery, they are facing mounting medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, and time away from work. We are coming together to ease that burden so she can focus on what matters most: healing and getting back home to the people who love her.

If you’re able, please consider donating. Every contribution, prayer, and share makes a difference. Let’s surround her with the same compassion, love and strength she has always given to others.

Thank you for being part of her journey back to health.