November 27th, 2006
Susan’s Story
“I was just walking down the street, and his SUV came out of nowhere…” -Susan Rajic, 43, San Francisco, CA
You may have read about Susan Rajic on MSNBC.com, in the San Francisco Chronicle, or seen her story on the Bay Area’s NBC11. Here’s what happened to her: a few days before her 43rd birthday, Susan Rajic was struck by an out-of-control SUV while walking from her home to the library. The man who hit her was on an insane spree on that late-August day; he ran down 19 people, killing one man and harming many including Ms. Rajic who was rendered paralyzed from the neck down.
Ms. Rajic was working as a massage therapist, a job she loved because it allowed her to attend to the well-being of others. But now Ms. Rajic has a steady stream of medical professionals tending to her. She’s undergone several surgeries, yet doctors say it will be miracle if she walks again. “I miss the simple things, like scratching my head. If I could do that, I would feel like a whole new person,” says Ms. Rajic, who was working part time and does not have health insurance.
Once she’s discharged from the hospital, Ms. Rajic will build a new life for herself, one including caretakers, medication, and a chin-operated wheelchair. Her first goal: to learn how to work a voice-operated computer so she can reclaim a little independence.
Susan Rajic, 43: “Appreciate every minute, because in a second, it can all be taken away.”
The Goal: $500,000 to defray medical expenses including an at-home caretaker, a special bed and a chin-operated wheelchair.
Read More about Susan Rajic on MSNBC.com
To be Susan Rajic’s Angel send a donation to:
Susan Rajic Special Fund Account
c/o Bank of Marin
3 Harbor Drive
Sausalito, California 94965
Attn: Amra, branch manager
Please write “Project Angel Mom” on the memo line of your check
Donate in someone else’s name, then
send them a Project:Angel Mom E-Card
to let them know about your gift
To be an Angel for other spinal cord injury survivors:
www.ChristopherReeve.org
Reported by Lixandra Urresta