Help for Cathy to recover from a traumatic injury

Hi. My name is Keith, and I am hoping to raise funds for my mother, who suffered a horrific injury while in a moment of bliss. This narrative also serves to inform loved ones and empathetic persons of the timeline of events as of this posting.

My mom is Cathy Bair. She met and fell in love with Ron Bair, and they were married on June 18, 2022. Both of them have endured losing a spouse in death. God led them to each other late in life and they found happiness together. With both of them energetic and in good health the future was bright, active, and joyous. They were just beginning to enjoy life together when she suffered a fall from a cliff, and is currently paralyzed from the waist down.

While afternoon hiking at a popular location in Wisconsin, she fell from a seemingly innocuous location a distance of approximately 20 feet. She landed on her head, then rolled down a ledge before coming to rest. There was a brief moment of loss of consciousness, but after only a few seconds, she opened her eyes wide and began crying out. She was alive. This is Miracle #1. 911 was called immediately, and the local EMS team arrived a short time later. In the meantime, passersby were stopping to offer help however they could. The injury was very severe, and she was airlifted to the nearest trauma center capable of handling such an injury. UW Medical Center, in Madison. WI. Emergency surgery was performed around midnight on her spine in the mid-thoracic region, which was the worst of her injuries. I had to leave the hospital at 2 am when she was finally admitted to a room in the Neuro ICU.

Injury

Over the next few days, she had multiple procedures/operations/surgeries to stabilize many injuries and complications. Her injuries as we know so far are as follow:

At the scene: obvious lacerations on her head and multiple places on her body; unable to feel/move lower extremities; extreme pain; EMTs administered IV fluids, medication for pain, and upper chest tubes on both sides for collapsed lungs. If anything else was administered, I do not know...A cervical collar was placed to stabilize her neck, and she was taken to the helicopter by the EMS and Rope Rescue Team.

At the hospital: multiple vertebral fractures; multiple extensive rib fractures on both sides; two collapsed lungs; deep lacerations on scalp; multiple lacerations on trunk and extremities; broken/cracked tooth; possible fracture of a femur; no sensation/control of lower extremities.

Emergency spinal surgery was done the night of the accident. Post-surgery, the surgeons were optimistic. The spinal cord was intact, looked smooth, and there was no CSF leakage. No skull fractures and minimal brain bleeding and concussion symptoms. That is Miracle #2.

Many more updates to come.

A link to the local news article is here:

https://www.wkow.com/news/66-year-old-woman-suffers-head-neck-injuries-in-fall-at-devils-lake-state-park/article_2aec43ce-231a-11ed-b08d-c3dee217fa34.html#:~:text=DEVIL'S%20LAKE%20(WKOW)%20%E2%80%94%20A,she%20fell%20about%2015%20feet.