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PROVIDENCE, Cache County — Hours after arriving in Senegal for her third humanitarian aid trip, Paula Gilsdorf-Barker was caught in a life-changing accident.
The 52-year-old Providence resident entered a taxi on the evening of March 21. The exact details of what happened next are unclear, but the taxi was involved in an accident that left its driver in a coma and Gilsdorf-Barker with severe damage to her legs, according to family spokesman Eric Stauffer.
Local doctors determined that she needed to be medically evacuated, so they casted the back of her legs and wrapped the front — where wounds and bones were exposed — to keep her legs as stable as possible. Gilsdorf-Barker’s travel insurance company decided her best chance at success would be in Paris, so she was flown there. Her parents, who were also in Senegal to help with the eye clinics hosted by Lion’s Club International, also made the trip.
“When they got there, they took her to a hospital in Paris and they did a medical evaluation and they determined that the soft tissue was dead and the nerves were dead and had been affected,” Stauffer said. “But, more importantly, that the bones had just been obliterated and there was nothing that they could do. They deemed it necessary while they were in surgery to amputate.”
Gilsdorf-Barker has a long road ahead of her after the amputation occurred on Sunday, with more surgeries scheduled for the near future. However, she will not be alone in her journey. Members of Gilsdorf-Barker’s community quickly rallied to help their friend, raising more than $20,000 on YouCaring* in two days.
“People who know Paula just know what a good person and a kind person she is,” Stauffer said. “We’re all astounded with the trials she has had to go through, so we thought it would be important to find a way to help. These costs are going to be astronomical. Just the cost to get her to Paris was more than the insurance policy could cover, I’m sure.”
Gilsdorf-Barker has faced more than her fair share of challenges, even before the accident in Senegal. In 2001, her 13-year-old son died from a staph infection that wasn’t detected early enough to stop. Only eight months later, her husband had a heart attack while driving home one night and died after crashing his car. In 2015, her second husband died.
Through it all, Gilsdorf-Barker has remained dedicated to serving others. Before her son died, he became involved with Relay for Life, so after his death she carried on volunteering for the organization in his name. When she and her second husband were chairs for the event, they raised just under $100,000 in one year for the region. The couple also loved Sub for Santa, often sacrificing their own Christmas celebrations to help others who had less.
“This woman has just been through trial after trial after trial, but even more remarkable is that even though she’s been through all of these trials, she has been a constant person who wants to give and care and serve those who are less fortunate,” Stauffer said.
For her livelihood, Gilsdorf-Barker runs a day care out of her home. Stauffer said she has helped raise many of the children in their community, so families are attached to her.
Helping Gilsdorf-Barker return to Utah will be expensive, with some estimates for medically equipped planes ranging between $60,000 and $75,000, according to Stauffer. He said that once she is home, she will need to undergo more surgery and physical therapy. On top of that, she will need to figure out which prosthesis will work for her and adapt to wheelchair mobility.
“She’s going to have to change her whole home,” Stauffer said. “She lives in a two-story home and all of her rooms are in the upstairs, so we’re going to have to change her whole livelihood and we wonder about her day care service she does. There are extreme challenges ahead.”
Those who are interested in helping with Gilsdorf-Barker’s medical costs can make donations online through YouCaring or at any Zions Bank location. The information for the Zions Bank fund is: Paula Gilsdorf-Barker Donation, account number 980572226 and routing number 124000054.
*KSL.com has not verified the accuracy of the information provided with respect to the account nor does KSL.com assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account you should consult your own advisors and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
