A Family's Struggle: Bills Piling Up After Car Crash
One second a family's driving down the road, the next they're in the hospital.
Now because of a car crash a single mother is struggling to pay the bills and keep herself and her children off the streets.
"I thought, oh my gosh, she's going to hit us and my kids are in the backseat,"
Trisha Farris told 11 News on Wednesday.
She says it all happened so fast.
"By the time we saw it it was too late. We slammed into it and it shot us across the intersection."
She and her two kids were driving down F Road near the I–70 business loop on Monday when the Colorado State Patrol says 87–year–old Opal Wood ran a red light and smashed into Farris.
"My ten-year-old has a pretty good burn and bruise from her seatbelt and my seven-year-old is at St. Mary's with a perforated bowel and a ruptured appendix," said Farris.
Wood got a ticket and the Farris family had to be rushed to the hospital. Two days later, the realities are setting in for the mother of three.
"I would hope insurance through the vehicles works, but at this point we don't know how we're going to pay for it."
Farris does not have health insurance, and to top it all off, she can't work to pay rent because of her injuries.
She's worried once little Sierra gets out of the hospital they'll have nowhere to go.
"We'll probably be homeless."
But even though she's struggling, she's worried about other families driving out there and she has a message for drivers.
"Think of other cars before you're in a hurry or you don't pay attention because it could be someone else's kid."
If you would like to help the Farris family, you can go to any Alpine Bank in the Grand Valley and donate to the Trisha and Sierra Farris Fund.
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by Lori Location: Oregon on Jul 13, 2008 at 04:14 PMSomeone out there in colorado should be able to help her with a place to stay, a car to drive and an attorneys work porbono or at least some sort of public assistance until she can get back on her feet. This wasnt just your every day accident this was tragic thing for the family struggling to make ends meet. Her child was seriously injured and she needs to be compensated for the accident. I hope the public would help. Good luck Trisha
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by Jessi Location: Clifton on Jul 10, 2008 at 03:38 PMDepending on the car insurance she carries, if she was working before and now cannot work due to injuries, her insurance could possibly pay a portion of her lost wages during the time she is out of work. The car insurance also should cover medical bills up to her limits per person. I was in a bad accident a few years ago and my car insurance covered 3/4 of my income I lost while I was out of work. Check into it!
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by John Location: Grand Junction on Jul 9, 2008 at 08:01 PMIt's about time that a local media outlet did an in-depth study of the number of traffic crashes like this one that are caused by elderly drivers. I believe they deserve as much scrutiny, if not more, than teenagers do.
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