Alyssa Na’kol Terry

Family and friends of Alyssa Terry are raising money for the nonprofit Help Hope Live to fund uninsured medical expenses associated with a catastrophic injury. Alyssa has chosen to fundraise with Help Hope Live in part because donations are tax-deductible for contributors and will only be used to cover medical and related expenses.

My Story

On July 3, 2023, my life changed in a matter of seconds. 

I was struck by a moving van and suffered catastrophic injuries. I arrived at the hospital as a Level 1 trauma patient with a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 3, the lowest score on the scale. My medical records documented severe head trauma, an open lower-extremity fracture, and the need for emergency airway management before I was stabilized and admitted to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit. 

I would go on to spend six weeks in a coma. My family was told that I could remain in a coma for as long as six months. Six weeks later, I opened my eyes. Although waking up was an incredible milestone, it wasn’t the end of my journey. In many ways, it was the beginning. Learning How to Live Again 

When I woke up, the life I knew before my accident had changed. 

More than three years later, I am still living with the effects of my injuries. My medical records document ongoing brain injury, ambulatory dysfunction, focal motor deficits, chronic pain, right-leg pain, posture imbalance, and muscle weakness. I also have hemiplegia affecting my dominant right side, along with neurological complications affecting my right ankle and Achilles tendon. 

Today, I use a wheelchair and continue to have significant difficulty using my right side. Mobility, balance, strength, and everyday activities that once required no thought can now require planning, assistance, adaptive equipment, or an entirely different approach. 

But recovery has taught me something important: Progress doesn’t always arrive in giant leaps. 

My Accident Changed My Life, Not My Future 

There was a time when simply waking up was the goal. Now today, I’m working toward a bachelor’s degree. After everything I experienced, I made the decision to return to college and continue my education. Since returning, I have earned Dean’s List recognition twice in a row, and I am now pursuing my bachelor’s degree in Graphic Communication. 

I am passionate about photography, videography, graphic design, branding, and visual storytelling. I want to continue developing my photography and creative work and eventually build a career doing what I love. 

That future means even more to me now. My accident changed the way I move through the world, but it did not take away my creativity. It didn’t take away my determination. It didn’t take away my dreams. And it certainly didn’t get the final word in my story. 

Why I’m Fundraising 

As much progress as I have made, there are still very real barriers between where I am today and the level of independence I am working toward. One of the biggest is safe, reliable, and accessible transportation. 

Getting to medical appointments, rehabilitation, school-related activities, and everyday necessities can be complicated when transportation and accessibility are not guaranteed. 

Our current driveway is primarily made up of rocks and gravel rather than a properly finished surface. When it rains, the rocks continue sinking farther into the ground, creating an increasingly uneven area. It has gotten to the point where vehicles can scrape along the bottom when entering or leaving. 

Something as ordinary as getting from your home into a vehicle may not seem significant until it becomes one of the things standing between you and your independence. Through Help Hope Live, I am fundraising to help cover approved uninsured medical and related expenses associated with my catastrophic injury and continued recovery. 

Depending on eligibility and approval, those needs may include rehabilitation and therapy, assistive technology, medical or mobility equipment, accessibility modifications, medically necessary transportation needs, and other expenses related to my continued recovery and independence. 

Before my accident, independence was something I didn’t have to think about. 

Now, it means everything. 

Independence means being able to safely leave my home. It means having reliable transportation to appointments and rehabilitation. It means continuing therapy and becoming stronger. It means having technology and equipment that help me work around the limitations caused by my injuries. 

It means finishing my bachelor’s degree. It means picking up my camera and continuing to create. It means building my career. It means having choices about where I go and what I do. 

It means getting another piece of my life back.

More Than What Happened to Me. I don’t want people to read my story and only see what happened to me on July 3, 2023. Because there is so much more to my story than that day. 

I survived. 

I learned how to navigate a body that works differently than it did before. I returned to college, and I made the Dean’s List twice. I continued pursuing my bachelor’s degree. 

My medical records contain diagnoses and descriptions of everything my body has endured. Those things are part of my story, but they aren’t the entirety of who I am. 

I am a daughter, a sister, a student, a photographer, a creator, and a young woman with an entire future still ahead of her. 

There are chapters of my life that haven’t even been written yet. 

How You Can Be Part of My Journey 

If you choose to support my campaign, you’re helping me continue building a life with greater accessibility, mobility, opportunity, and independence. Support doesn’t only mean donating. 

Sharing my campaign, participating in a fundraiser, telling someone about my story, or simply encouraging me along the way can make a difference. 

I know recovery isn’t a straight line. 

There will be victories. There will be setbacks. There will be things I have to learn to do differently. But if the last three years have taught me anything, it’s that different does not mean impossible. 

On July 3, 2023, my life changed forever, but my future didn’t disappear that night. I’m still here; I’m still learning; I’m still creating; I’m still dreaming; I’m still becoming more independent, and most importantly, I’m still moving forward. 💙 

Thank you for believing in my journey and for helping me build everything that comes next.

With love and gratitude,

Alyssa Terry