Tri State
McDaniel Student Hopeful After Tragedy
Race Information
Kelli Hawthorne’s dreams are as big as her heart. An alum of McDaniel College and a graduate student in the ‘BEST program (Better Educators of Students Tomorrow), Kelli has high hopes of making a difference in the lives of children as an elementary school teacher. However, on September 20th 2009, those dreams were stalled for the 24 year old. Following her brother’s wedding in Oregon, she went for a quiet stroll along starlit coastal beaches. In the darkness, she plunged 25 feet head first into the rocky cliffs below and was wedged between the jagged boulders. It took local rescue crews over an hour to free her.
Kelli was rushed to a hospital in Lincoln City where the medical staff worked to stabilize her. According to an article in The Times of Trenton, the night she arrived at the intensive care unit there were only 12 total patients. By the next morning, four had died. Her mom, Ruth recalls, “The police and paramedics told us there was no reason she should be alive. “They said, "We've never gotten a live person out of this.” Then she was moved to Legacy Emanuel Hospital & Health Center in Portland to begin extensive facial reconstruction surgery.
Eric Dierks, renowned maxillofacial surgeon, was able to reconstruct Kelli's face during a 3-hour surgery that included over 1,500 stitches. She had broken both wrists and seven ribs. She had bruised both lungs, suffered multiple liver and facial lacerations as well as severe brain trauma. Her jaw, teeth and cheekbone were shattered. Miraculously, neither her legs nor her spinal cord were injured in the fall. Despite her critical injuries, Kelli’s humor and positive attitude made her a favorite of the hospital staff.
Flanked by her family, friends and colleagues, she is working hard on her recovery, which includes speech and physical therapy several times a week. To help ease the exorbitant cost of her medical bills—90% of which are not covered by her insurance--family members and friends are planning several fundraisers throughout the year.
On May 15th, 2010, The KELLI HAWTHORNE “RUN FOR LIFE” CROSS COUNTRY 5K and FUN RUN will be held at McDaniel College in Westminster, MD. All proceeds will go directly to the KELLI HAWTHORNE FUND. The event is supported in part by: McDaniel College, Westminster Parks and Recreation and the Westminster Road Runners Club.
For more information please contact: Grant Disharoon or Shawn Weaver at khrunforlife@gmail.com.
To register please visit: http://www.active.com/event_detail.cfm?event_id=1837957
Race Information
Kelli Hawthorne’s dreams are as big as her heart. An alum of McDaniel College and a graduate student in the ‘BEST program (Better Educators of Students Tomorrow), Kelli has high hopes of making a difference in the lives of children as an elementary school teacher. However, on September 20th 2009, those dreams were stalled for the 24 year old. Following her brother’s wedding in Oregon, she went for a quiet stroll along starlit coastal beaches. In the darkness, she plunged 25 feet head first into the rocky cliffs below and was wedged between the jagged boulders. It took local rescue crews over an hour to free her.
Kelli was rushed to a hospital in Lincoln City where the medical staff worked to stabilize her. According to an article in The Times of Trenton, the night she arrived at the intensive care unit there were only 12 total patients. By the next morning, four had died. Her mom, Ruth recalls, “The police and paramedics told us there was no reason she should be alive. “They said, "We've never gotten a live person out of this.” Then she was moved to Legacy Emanuel Hospital & Health Center in Portland to begin extensive facial reconstruction surgery.
Eric Dierks, renowned maxillofacial surgeon, was able to reconstruct Kelli's face during a 3-hour surgery that included over 1,500 stitches. She had broken both wrists and seven ribs. She had bruised both lungs, suffered multiple liver and facial lacerations as well as severe brain trauma. Her jaw, teeth and cheekbone were shattered. Miraculously, neither her legs nor her spinal cord were injured in the fall. Despite her critical injuries, Kelli’s humor and positive attitude made her a favorite of the hospital staff.
Flanked by her family, friends and colleagues, she is working hard on her recovery, which includes speech and physical therapy several times a week. To help ease the exorbitant cost of her medical bills—90% of which are not covered by her insurance--family members and friends are planning several fundraisers throughout the year.
On May 15th, 2010, The KELLI HAWTHORNE “RUN FOR LIFE” CROSS COUNTRY 5K and FUN RUN will be held at McDaniel College in Westminster, MD. All proceeds will go directly to the KELLI HAWTHORNE FUND. The event is supported in part by: McDaniel College, Westminster Parks and Recreation and the Westminster Road Runners Club.
For more information please contact: Grant Disharoon or Shawn Weaver at khrunforlife@gmail.com.
To register please visit: http://www.active.com/event_detail.cfm?event_id=1837957
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KELLI HAWTHORNE “RUN FOR LIFE” CROSS COUNTRY 5K and FUN RUN