Conn. Woman Paralyzed In Crash In Africa (Uganda) — Family In Need Of Funds To Bring Woman Home, from a hospital in Nairobi, Kenya.

Two years ago, Dawn Cole, a 42 year old American, would have never realized that she would be at the center of an international effort to return her to the United States. She is in Nairobi Hospital paralyzed from the neck down, the result of a recent automobile accident.

Ms. Cole left her home in Bristol, Connecticut, to work for a U.S. contractor in Iraq. While there, she met and fell in love with Daniel Turinawe, a Ugandan. They became engaged. When her Iraq work contract was complete, she traveled to Uganda to be with her fiancé before returning to the United States.

On May 15, four days before her scheduled return to Connecticut, Ms. Cole was seriously injured in a car accident in Uganda. Her injuries were so severe she was airlifted to Kenya where she underwent surgery at Nairobi Hospital. For the past month, doctors and nurses at the hospital have been providing her with professional care despite the fact that she is uninsured. Nairobi Hospital has required her family to be responsible for her medical expenses. These expenses are presently in the tens of thousands of dollars and are increasing daily. Her family is desperately trying to raise the funds to cover her continued care at Nairobi Hospital.

Her brothers, Brier Cole and Elliot Johnson, and sister, Jeanetta Taylor, are mobilizing family members and friends to raise the necessary funds to care for Ms. Cole medical expenses in Nairobi and ultimately to bring her home to the United States. “Our family is sending all the money we have, but it’s not enough,” says Brier Cole. Because of the extent of her injuries, doctors indicate Ms. Cole cannot be transferred to the United States for another month or so. Efforts are being mounted using calls, emails and facebook.com. A website has been set up by the family to accept donations (http://bringdawnhome.spaces.live.com).

Family Contact Information:

Her brother Brier Cole
60 High Street Bristol, Connecticut 06010
Cell: (203) 598-9492
Email: everlastingendings@sbcglobal.net

Please send Donations To:

Dawn Cole Fundraiser Webster Bank
150 Main Street Bristol, CT 06010

Donations can be sent directly to the bank made payable to: The Dawn Cole Fundraiser

OR Click Below To Donate Via Paypal

Bring Dawn Home: http://bringdawnhome.spaces.live.com/

Ms. Cole’s cousin, is traveling to Nairobi to assure Dawn that the family is doing everything it can to make her as comfortable as possible and to assess her medical condition. “We’ve run out of options,” Brier Cole said. “We’re selling everything we have, and my sister is still there.” The U.S. Embassy and State Department are aware of Dawn’s plight.

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1. A Virginia woman is at home in Burke tonight, but her heart and thoughts are many miles away. Her sister has been in a horrible car accident that’s left her paralyzed. [ READ MORE ]

2. Woman Paralyzed In Crash In Africa WFSB – Jun 9, 2009 — Three weeks ago, Connecticut resident Dawn Cole was in a bad car accident in Africa, leaving her unable to move her arms and legs. … Family struggles to get woman out of Africa after car crash. [ READ MORE ]

3. Bristol Press — Jun 6, 2009 ……His 42-year-old sister, Dawn Cole, was injured in a car accident in Africa. Now paralyzed, she waits in a Kenya hospital while her family struggles to raise … [ READ MORE ]

4. Bristol woman fights for life in Uganda WTNH – 17 hours ago: 42-year-old Dawn Cole of Bristol in better times working as a private contractor in Iraq. But in May, four days before she was to come home from visiting … [ READ MORE ]

5. No way to treat a visitor — Breaking News Kenya Jun 6, 2009 … Dawn Cole was a contractor in Iraq with KBR. While there she met a Ugandan man, fell in love and went to Uganda to visit Africa for the …… Woman Paralyzed In Crash In Africa 10 Jun 2009 11:31 GMT … in Kenya. She was recently airlifted from Uganda after being hurt in a car accident while visiting her fiancé, who she’d … hospital is asking for more money. The crash occurred four days before Dawn Cole was supposed …. [ READ MORE ]

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