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On December 23rd, Mitch and Aaron Cooper were traveling to Tennessee to visit with Dustin, Jen, Rocky, and Willa for Christmas. While they were traveling through Georgia, another vehicle was traveling the wrong direction in their lane and hit them head on in their camper.
Mitch had a broken femur, torn ligament in his spine, and bleeding on his liver. Aaron had a broken femur, broken shin, broken hip, broken hand, broken arm, multiple hematomas and lacerations. Both were taken by ambulance to Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta.
On December 24th, Mitch and Aaron had surgeries to repair their broken femurs.
On December 25th, Aaron had surgery to repair his broken hip.
Mitch was discharged from the hospital on December 26th but cannot care for himself, drive, or walk. He will start physical therapy in 4-8 weeks, depending on his healing process.
Aaron is still in the hospital as the staff continue to monitor his injuries. When Aaron is discharged, he will not be able to move his leg at all for 4-8 months until he can begin physical therapy.
Mitch and Aaron won’t be able to return home to Florida for awhile, so the current plan is that they will temporarily move to Tennessee so Dustin and Jen can help care for them, as long as we can get it approved for them to get their follow up care in Knoxville.
Here is what we need help with right now:
- The camper was definitely totaled but is being held as evidence for a minimum of 60 days in Atlanta. Mitch and Aaron cannot get their belongings from it at this time. So, they do not have their clothes, phones, or personal items. We need to purchase clothing for them because they do not have anything right now.
- Dustin and Jen are caring for Zelda. She did not sustain any injuries, but she was in the camper at the time of the accident. She requires a little extra care because she is elderly, so they will be covering those expenses.
- We are looking into the possibility of getting Mitch and Aaron an apartment in Lenoir City while Dustin and Jen are caring for them. This will be difficult financially because Mitch and Aaron are also out of work while they are recovering.
If you would like to help in any other way (rather than monetarily), please reach out to Dustin or Jen to find out current needs.