St. Maarten

Around the same time that Jasmine was struggling to survive, Jack,Jill, Chelsea and I were enjoying a vacation in St. Maarten that Jack had won through a raffle at work. It was the first time that I had ever been out of the country, and it was very exciting for all of us. Little did we know that this much needed vacation was going to have to last us a long time. We took advantage of all the great places to eat, the beaches on the Dutch and French side, and even gawked at the naked couples strolling on the beach! Jill and Chelsea went sky gliding ( I could barely watch) and they laughed so hard that I think I can still hear them laughing. When we came home, Jill went to New York with Mary Lynn and her girls, and then to Hershey Park. It was almost as if God was giving her a bunch of fun trips because He knew what was in store for her. On April 17th 2004, not even a month after Jasmine's life altering event, Jill had hers. While crossing the street by our house on their way home from a trip to McDonalds, Jill and Caity(my niece) started to cross the street. Halfway through the four lane road, the light turned green for the cars to go, and a pick up truck that was coasting towards the light, stepped on the gas and went. What happened next changed our lives forever. Jill and Caity were struck by the truck and tossed into the air. Caity landed first and Jill traveled still a little further until she was at least 70 feet from the point of impact. We were called to the scene by a passerby who found out who they were, and we were there in a few minutes. They were both medivacked to Jersey Shore, where they were both evaluated for all of their injuries. Jill sustained a broken femur,broken pelvis, broken knee, broken leg, hemorraging around her liver, concussion, and road rash on her arms and legs and head. Caity suffered facial injuries as well as back and road rash to her feet.(she had been wearing flip flops) Jill was in intensive care for a few days, having an operation to put a rod in her femur and for observation for her other injuries. All in all they were in the hospital for about a week and then they transferred Jill to Childrens Specialized Hospital in Toms River. I had never even heard of the hospital before, so I was surprised to find out that it was only about ten minutes from our house. It was there that Jill and I spent the next five weeks, me sleeping in a chair, and Jill suffering from all the pain she was in, and having to go through extensive physical therapy.