Krystle Carruthers

Krystle’s Story

Krystle had just returned from Kuwait, on May 6, 2015, where she served with her Oregon National Guard unit, Engineering 234. She was an athletic, energetic soldier who could be found either in the gym or jogging around the base. During PT she would out-run all the other girls and half the guys! She worked hard at being fit, trim, and buff.

Eleven days after her return to Oregon on May 17, 2015, she was hit by a DUI driver which resulted in her sustaining a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), a broken right arm and numerous other abrasions and bruises. She was rushed to the nearby Legacy Emanuel in Portland, Oregon, where she underwent surgery to remove a subdural hematoma (blood clot) from her brain and to have a bone flap on her skull removed. The doctors gave her a 5% chance of survival.

She survived. However, we were told she would most likely remain in a vegetable state and probably not get off her ventilator. When she started breathing on her own, she had a tracheotomy and began to breathe on her own. She was not expected to be able to have her tracheal tube removed, but she soon proved everyone wrong and was fully weaned from it, showing us she is a true fighter. For several months now, she has been able to eat small amounts of pureed food orally but still needs to be tube fed. Our hope is that one day she will be able to be fed 100% orally. It will be a long journey.

Krystle spent 3 months at Legacy Emanuel in Portland, Oregon, 6 months at Providence Benedictine in Mt. Angel, Oregon, then 4 months at the VA Palo Alto Polytrauma Center in California. On June 7, 2016, she was flown back to Oregon and now resides at the Oregon Veteran’s Home in Lebanon, Oregon.

Krystle has been accepted to be a participant in a “transcranial magnetic stimulation” (TMS) research study at the Hines VA Hospital near Chicago, Illinois. The target of the treatment is the area of her brain that deals with communication. The 10-week research study is funded by the Department of Defense, however, Krystle’s air-ambulance transportation is not covered. The estimated cost for a “bed-to-bed” round-trip, including ambulances, medical crews, flight crews, air-ambulance, etc., is $60K. Funds received above that amount will be used to help cover costs related to obtaining the “functional electronic stimulation” devices from Bioness. We are excited that we have received a matching gift, so every dollar received will be automatically doubled!

We have chosen to fundraise with Help Hope Live in part because Help Hope Live assures fiscal accountability of funds raised and tax deductibility to the full extent allowed by law for donors. Donors can be sure that funds donated will be used only to pay or reimburse medically-related expenses. To make a tax-deductible donation to this fundraising campaign, click on the Give button. For more information, please contact Help Hope Live at 800-642-8399.

As soon as we have raised the necessary contributions, we will make arrangements for her flight to Hines VA Hospital. We look forward to seeing how God supplies Krystle’s needs.

Thank you, Krystle’s Army for your encouragement and support!