Our Stories

On May 4, 2010, I was in a motorcycle accident that nearly took my life.  The bike went through a fence and hit a tree.  I was wearing full protective gear.  I remember thinking, “wow it’s dark and there are no sounds.  This is what it’s like when you die.”  I woke up three days later.

I was life flighted to a trauma center.   I lost my spleen, lacerated my liver and mesenteric artery, had three broken ribs, shattered my wrist, broke my nose, lacerated my ear, and tore the ligament that runs to the quad muscles in my left leg. I was in a coma for several days.  The day they woke me up, I vaguely remember seeing my husband at my bedside.  He told me he would come back later to check on me.  That same night, he passed away in his sleep from a heart condition we didn’t know he had. My parents came to tell me the news at 7:30 a.m. Saturday morning.

It was extremely difficult to be in the hospital trying to recover and plan my husband’s funeral at the same time.  There were many who supported and helped during this time, friends, family and staff at both Mountain View Hospital and Utah Valley Regional Medical Center.  This was just the beginning.  I was unable to work for an extended period, we were not able to receive the income promised from my husband’s employment for an extended period, medical bills and normal living expenses were adding up quickly with no way for me to pay them.  We were in jeopardy of losing many of the things Chris and I had worked so hard for, things that remind me of Chris.

Thanks to the love and support from my hospital and the Hope Fund, I was able to meet the added demands, stay in my home, be with my daughter and recover physically and emotionally.  It is still difficult, we miss Chris, but we are making it thanks to the help of people I don’t even know.