“Tammy at MSC was the nicest lady, she went above and beyond to help me,” shares Donald.
Donald was on his way to his job as a technician for a medical supply company bright and early on a snowy morning in December 2013 when an accident changed his life forever.
He was near the federal detention center in SeaTac when he saw an elderly woman stuck in the snow. Donald got out of the car to assist the woman and was struck by another car that was traveling too fast for the weather. The car hit him and sent him flying into another car, and then hit him again pushing him underneath at car.
Donald’s right leg was almost completely torn off a few inches above his ankle, and he suffered damage to his internal organs similar to being crushed by debris in an earthquake. “The doctors said the only reason I survived was because I was so big. It saved me,” shared Donald.
Because of the weather, it took almost an hour for medical help to arrive. Guards at the detention center had seen the accident and came to assist. One of them tied a tourniquet around Donald’s leg. Donald was conscious throughout the ordeal, but remained calm. He credits his calmness to his previous experience as a medic.
Donald faced a long recovery. The first surgery on his leg lasted over 12 hours, followed by a month long stay in Harborview. Doctors were able to save his leg, but Donald also had other injuries and experienced kidney failure. Donald’s leg now has two titanium rods and a scar that is almost the entire length of his lower leg. He has had four surgeries on his leg with more to follow, and continues to see a kidney specialist every six months. In just these last nine months or so, he has finally gained back some mobility and was able to move from being bedridden, to a wheelchair and walker, to a cane, and finally walk on his own.
While he has made remarkable progress in his recovery, he continues to have issues with mobility and pain in his leg which prevents him from working. He has also suffered emotionally from the many changes in his life. Donald will most likely be on pain management medications for the rest of his life. The change from being active and employed, to being immobile and not able to do anything has been difficult for Donald and has led to feelings of depression. A neighbor of his suggested he get a therapy dog, and he adopted Batman, who has had a significant positive impact on Donald’s emotional well-being.
Donald’s employer at the time of the accident was very helpful. He had good health insurance, short and long-term disability, and his employer held his job for him until it was clear he would be unable to work. Donald was making ends meet financially until he was approved for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). His long-term disability stopped paying and it took four months for Donald to receive a check from SSDI. Donald got behind on the rent in the apartment he had lived in for nine years, and his landlord started the eviction process.
Donald contact Multi-Service Center and was able to get assistance with two month’s rent to keep him in his apartment and also to assist with some utility bills. Multi-Service Center staff worked hard to negotiate with Donald’s landlord to accept the rent, and keep Donald in stable housing.
“Even if I had known what was going to happen, I would have still gotten out to help. That’s the way my mom taught me to be,” says Donald.
