Tragedy struck a single mom of four kids after she suffered severe third-degree burns on over 30 percent of her body from a bonfire. The injury happened while she was on vacation in Michigan to attend her friend's wedding. Her family is now asking for help to bring her home and continue what they say will be months of therapy to treat her burns.
The details of what happened on August 28 to Tami Chmielweski were not revealed, although most of the burns were on her feet and legs, according to Chmielweski's daughter Brooklyn Hardwick.
Doctors predict Chmielweski will need at least six months of physical therapy to recover from her burns. According to a GoFundMe donation page created by her family, she remains in the Hennepin County Medical Center burn unit in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Family creates Go FundMe page for Mom's treatment
They wrote on the GoFundMe page that their mom is strong, selfless, caring, and so determined as an individual. According to her children, their mom's first concern was others who witnessed or were involved in the accident and asked how they were doing.
According to the family, the Gilbert, Arizona native has already undergone multiple daily procedures to remove her burned skin. She also underwent additional procedures under anesthesia and had at least one round of skin-grafting, according to People Magazine.
The family wrote on Saturday that their mom had a strenuous day working with the therapy team. The mom of three adult children and one minor child loves working out and pushing herself, which remains to be the case even with her injuries.
Her children said she was so close to standing on her own today. They are constantly reminding her to extend herself grace and to take the challenges one day at a time. They know it will be a long road ahead for her, but they think she's up for the challenge. They will be alongside her and continue looking forward.
Mom's accident will be life-altering
They also said on the GoFundMe post, which has already collected pledges totaling more than $65,000, that this accident has been and will be life-altering. They said that a lot of physical and mental therapy would need to take place over the next months and years for their mom to recover from this.
Her family said that a big hurdle they will be facing is getting her back to Arizona safely and comfortably, as that will not be covered by insurance due to it being a lateral transfer. They said that a medical flight back to Arizona costs around $80,000. Her kids have put together the fundraiser to assist their mother by relieving her the best they can of the financial burden.
None of Chmielweski's kids have been able to see her thus far. Hardwick told AZFamily.com that any donation helps, and they appreciate it from the bottom of their hearts.
