Julie broke BOTH wrists in a freak ice skating accident. She’s had double surgery, can’t work, and, worst of all, can’t take pain meds because she’s allergic. I’m Pam, her best friend of 40+ years, and I’m hoping to raise a little help to make her recovery a bit easier. She’s been handling everything with courage and humor, but it’s been a rough ride:

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This is my best friend, Julie- or Jul, as I call her. We’ve been best friends for 40+ years, always up for a new adventure. Our unofficial “hobby” is trying new hobbies. So when we decided to take an ice skating lesson, we figured it would be a fun, box-checking kind of thing.

Well, boxes were checked alright… just not the kind we expected. I found myself filling out medical forms after Jul fell during our lesson and broke BOTH of her wrists.

It was awful, truly awful, seeing her on the ice with limp, twisted wrists. It hurts just thinking about it. The people around us were amazing, bringing ice and helping us get to the car so I could drive her to the hospital. Through it all, Jul stayed calm. In fact, she was the one asking me if I was okay to drive. Classic Julie. Managing the chaos and checking on everyone else, even with TWO broken wrists!

She ended up breaking four bones in her left wrist and three in her right. She needed surgery on both arms, and now has a whole lot of metal holding everything in place. It’s not the kind of upgrade she asked for…but here we are.

Here’s the worst part: Julie is allergic to all pain medication. That means she had to go through all of this with no prescription painkillers. Just over-the-counter stuff. The pain was unbearable. I can’t even imagine.

Julie lives alone, but she’s had to temporarily move in with her parents while she recovers. Thankfully, her mom is a retired nurse and is giving her excellent care. Still, daily life with two casts and zero usable hands? It’s hard, humbling, and at times- hilarious in that “if we don’t laugh, we’ll cry” kind of way.

I’m setting up this fundraiser to help cover:

• Lost wages while she’s out of work

• Out-of-pocket medical expenses

• Basic needs during recovery (like help around the house — or, you know, someone to open a can of soup)

And yes… to answer the most-asked question: She got a bidet.

Thank you so much for reading, sharing, and supporting Julie. She’s a trooper, and my very favorite person to try terrible new hobbies with.

Love,

Pamela