In Honor of Karen LaBarbera
"My sister, Karen LaBarbera was hit and severely injured by a drunk driver on August 30, 2013. Karen was air-lifted to Stony Brook Trauma Center where she was placed in an induced coma. Karen had 23 surgeries in 25 days. She suffered amputation of almost her entire left leg as well as loss of her eyesight in her right eye and bleeding of her brain in three places. The woman who hit Karen blew a .20 almost three times the legal limit and thanks to the DA’s office, Suffolk County Detectives and Police Department and MADD the offender served time in jail.
Watching my sister day after day in the trauma unit was the most heart-wrenching thing I’ve ever done. Day after day, surgery after surgery, we never knew if it would be her last. Today, nothing has gotten any easier. Every day is a struggle for Karen. What we take for granted is such an ordeal each and every day for her, from getting up to going to the bathroom to getting dressed.
One thing that did help on this difficult journey was MADD's support. I was in need of such care, and MADD was wonderfully, miraculously there for me. I don’t know if I could have made it without their help.
As we approach the 10th anniversary this summer, I am asking you all to join me in donating to Walk Like MADD. Thank you in advance for your generosity."
- Cathy Dubas-Busuttil