Susie Rafalo

On June 20th Susie and her brother, Peter, were driving home from a long day of work when suddenly it began to rain, causing Susie’s car to swerve into oncoming traffic and collide with an SUV. Peter got out of this horrible accident with only a few cuts and bruises, but Susie wasn’t so lucky. For the first few days she lay in a coma; and even when she awoke, it became clear that she would be paralyzed. Her doctors also thought she would be unresponsive for the rest of her life, only able to communicate with her eyes.

Within the first week we knew that she was able to hear and understand us. She was able to respond to all of our questions. We noticed how she moved her legs and shoulders when the nurses came in to care and evaluate her. Since then, Susie had two surgeries on her spinal cord. Susie was always full of joy and very outgoing, she loved meeting new people and she hated being alone. Susie was a dental assistant and loved her job which she was very good at – everyone who worked with her loved her. Susie’s smile shows she is fighting to regain power. She still faces many obstacles, but we believe in our hearts that she will again stand on her own, walk and be able to talk. She will require very expensive treatment and therapy, and we are asking for your assistance in raising money for her therapy.

To help offset such expenses, a fundraising campaign in Susie’s honor has been established with HelpHOPELive, a trusted nonprofit organization that has been providing community-based fundraising guidance to patients and their families for more than 30 years. All donations are tax-deductible, are held by HelpHOPELive, are held by HelpHOPELive in the North-Central Spinal Cord Injury Fund, and are administered by HelpHOPELive for injury-related expenses only. If you would like to make a contribution today please click the DONATE NOW button.

Thank you in advance for your support and kindness during this time – together we can make a difference for Susie.

On behalf of Susie’s family,

Marzena Karwowska