Dan's Story

Hi, we are David and Margot and we're hoping you can help our dear friend Dan Koziol, who has suffered a traumatic brain injury. Insurance is covering a portion of Dan’s care but the residual expenses are proving to be overwhelming for his wife and family. At the beginning of 2022, Dan and his wife Susan visited with family in Mazatlan, Mexico. They fell in love with Mazatlan’s natural beauty and laid-back lifestyle. An idea began to take place . . . they could work remotely and have a fabulous adventure in Mexico. After long deliberations, they decided to make the move. They sold their home in Ramona and found their piece of paradise near the warm beaches of Mazatlan. On June 15, 2022, their dreams were shattered. On the way to meet with the realtor, the taxi driver lost control of his open-air vehicle and slammed into a high curb launching Dan head-first onto the pavement. Both Dan and Susan were taken by ambulance to the hospital. Susan was much more concerned about Dan than about her own painful injuries. It was clear Dan had suffered severe head trauma, as well as a broken jaw and a number of major injuries. Dan was rushed into surgery. The trauma team doctors and surgeons were not at all optimistic, giving Dan only a 10% chance of surviving the night. They removed part of his skull to allow for swelling and induced a coma. Dan pulled through that first horrible night and his odds of survival for the next few days rose to 25%. Dan’s daughter immediately flew in from Spain and joined Susan at Dan’s bedside. For weeks, all of Dan and Susan’s friends and family prayed for a miracle. After almost two months in the Mazatlan Hospital, Dan was stable enough to be transported back to San Diego where he was hospitalized for another 30 days. Medical bills began piling one on top of the other causing Susan financial panic. The taxi driver was uninsured. No money coming in from any source. Having no home, Susan rented a small apartment near the hospital. In August, Dan was discharged to Susan’s care. Insurance provided no help in outfitting their new home for Dan’s many medical requirements. Susan was provided only minimal medical training, given only scant supplies and offered no professional assistance. At the time, Dan was being fed through a feeding tube. He could not speak or assist Susan in transferring himself from his hospital bed to a wheelchair or to care for his own personal needs. Despite this, Susan and Dan have been marching toward recovery. She has been by Dan’s side caring for him 24 hours a day since the injury. Dan has made significant progress. He has been able stand and walk with help. He can speak in short sentences. He can respond to simple commands and shows an understanding much deeper than he can communicate. Most wonderfully, he lights up when Susan is near. He has a special smile only for her. Dan continues to make slow progress and Susan is grateful for every day she has with Dan. There have been countless medical, financial, and emotional setbacks. At this writing, Dan is once again hospitalized. He will need another surgery to rectify an obvious but undiagnosed buildup of fluid on his brain. Dan has very basic Kaiser insurance. He desperately needs advanced physical and neurological therapies that are not being covered. Susan has almost depleted the money she and Dan saved for their Mazatlan dream home. The situation is becoming dire and Dan has so far to go. Susan is a brave, formidable advocate and caretaker but is looking at years of expensive treatment. Understandably, she is frightened by this and what it means for her husband, herself and their future. What was, only a few months ago, so bright is now daunting. Please help. Any amount helps. Susan, Dan, Margot and I will forever be thankful for your support. David Legge 7:28 PM (2 minutes ago) to me Hi, we are David and Margot and we're hoping you can help our dear friend Dan Koziol, who has suffered a traumatic brain injury. Insurance is covering a portion of Dan’s care, but many additional expenses are proving to be overwhelming for his wife and family. At the beginning of 2022, Dan and his wife Susan visited with family in Mazatlán, Mexico. They fell in love with Mazatlán’s natural beauty and laid-back lifestyle. An idea began to take place that they could work remotely and have a fabulous adventure in Mexico. After long deliberations, they decided to make the move. They sold their home in Ramona and found their piece of paradise by the warm beaches of Mazatlán. On June 15, 2022, their dreams were shattered. On the way to meet with the realtor, their taxi driver lost control of his open-air vehicle and slammed into a high curb launching Dan head-first onto the pavement. Both Dan and Susan were taken to the hospital. Susan was much more concerned for Dan than about her own painful injuries. It was clear Dan had suffered severe head trauma, as well as a broken jaw and several other major injuries. Dan was rushed into surgery. The trauma team doctors and surgeons were not at all optimistic, giving Dan only a 10% chance of surviving the night. They removed part of his skull to allow for swelling and induced a coma in which he remained for two weeks. Thankfully, Dan pulled through that first horrible night and his odds of survival for the next few days rose to 25%. Susan’s son Edward and her sister Sonia immediately made the trip down to Mexico. Dan’s daughter Amea boarded the next plane from Spain to join the family at Dan’s bedside. All of Dan and Susan’s friends and family prayed for a miracle. After 22 days in the Mazatlán Hospital, Dan was stable enough to be transported back to San Diego where he was hospitalized for another month. Medical bills began piling one on top of the other causing Susan financial panic. The taxi driver was uninsured. She could not work. Social Security couldn’t help. No money was coming in from any source. Having no home, Susan rented a small apartment near the hospital. In August, Dan was discharged into Susan’s care. Insurance provided no help in outfitting their new home for Dan’s many medical requirements. Susan was provided only minimal medical training, given only scant supplies and offered no professional assistance. At the time, Dan was being fed through a feeding tube. He could not speak or assist Susan in transferring himself from his hospital bed to a wheelchair or to care for his own personal needs. Despite harrowing obstacles, Susan and Dan have been marching toward recovery. She has been by Dan’s side caring for him 24 hours a day since the accident. Dan has made some progress. He has been able to stand and walk with help. He can speak in short sentences. He can respond to simple commands and shows an understanding much deeper than he can communicate. Most wonderfully, he lights up when Susan is near. He has a special smile only for her. As Dan continues to make progress Susan is grateful for every day she has with him. There have been countless medical, financial, and emotional setbacks. At this writing, Dan is once again hospitalized after suffering several painful and dangerous urinary tract infections. He will need yet another surgery to place a shunt into his head to rectify an obvious but previously undiagnosed buildup of fluid on his brain. Dan has very basic Kaiser insurance. He desperately needs advanced physical and neurological therapies that are not being covered. Susan has almost depleted the money she and Dan saved for their Mazatlán dream home. The situation is becoming dire and Dan has so far to go. Susan is a brave, formidable advocate and caretaker but is looking at years of expensive treatment. Understandably, she is frightened by this and what it means for her husband, herself and their future. What was, only a few months ago, so bright is now daunting. Please donate. Any amount helps. Susan, Dan, and we will forever be thankful for your support. Thank you, David and Margot -- Cheers,