On April 10, the wonderful and much-loved Shirley Matsche was running errands near the home that she and her husband Dan have lived in since they moved to Colorado Springs in 1997. As Shirley had the green light, she entered the intersection. Unbeknownst to her, the driver of an SUV, distracted and coming from the left, ran his red light and hit Shirley’s car going 45-50 mph. Airbags deployed. Glass shattered. Shirley’s car was destroyed. The impact was so devastating that the front wheel of her vehicle was torn from the car and thrown across a wide intersection, landing across the street.
Police and medical personnel quickly arrived. They carefully extracted her from the car, and placed her in an ambulance, which transported her to the trauma unit of a local hospital. Dan, a prison chaplain for 42 years, was over 70 miles away, coming home from the prison in Limon CO, and called Shirley to ask her to lunch. One of the nurses heard Shirley’s phone ring and handed it to her. Shirley told Dan that she had been in an accident but she didn’t know what hospital she was at. The nurse overheard the conversation and told Dan that she was at Memorial Central, to which Dan replied “I’ll be right there” and flew directly to the hospital. Though her injuries were severe, God miraculously spared her, for if the SUV had hit closer to the driver’s side door, the outcome would have been very, very different.
After multiple tests, scans, and X-rays, it was determined that Shirley had broken the C2 vertebrae in her neck, had fractured 7 ribs (some of them double-fractures) and had transverse process fractures in her back. She was placed in a cervical collar, given lots of pain medication and was scheduled for spinal fusion surgery (C1, C2 and C3), which was a success.
There have been a lot of ups and downs during her 7-week stay at the hospital. Shirley has had days where she is alert, and days of confusion and delirium. Due to her struggle to swallow, she was put on a feeding tube to help her get the nutrition that her body desperately needed in order to heal. After 2 weeks, (which is as long as one is allowed to be on a feeding tube), she finally passed the swallow test, and the feeding tube was removed. Not long after that, she was moved to a rehabilitation facility.
She did have to go to the hospital for several days due to an infection and possible seizure. She has since returned to the rehab facility, and they say she may be able to go home in several weeks, even though she continues to struggle with bouts of confusion and delirium. The doctors aren’t sure if the delirium is caused by the anesthesia during the surgery, the 7-week long stay in the hospital, or bleeding on the brain from the accident (thankfully, early tests indicated that the bleeding has stopped). These bouts of delirium are very difficult on Dan and we’re praying that these instances will lessen with each passing day.
Throughout this, Dan has been surrounded by friends and loved ones who have been there from the moment the accident happened, have stayed with him at the hospital, prayed with him, and traveled from all over the country to support him and Shirley, and they are incredibly thankful for all the love and prayers.
While the Lord has protected and provided for the two of them in untold ways during this time, they are now facing a staggering financial burden. The driver responsible for this horrible accident only has $25,000 worth of insurance coverage, of which a portion is paying for attorney’s fees. The cost for Shirley’s surgery and 7-week hospital stay is around $1.5 million, which does not include any return trips to the hospital after she was released to the rehab facility. Dan and Shirley’s insurance can cover up to $100,000 of the expenses, and Medicare is providing coverage for her stay at the rehab facility, but only for a limited number of days. If she has to stay at the rehab facility for a longer period of time and if she needs in-home care while Dan is away at the prison (which is almost assured), they will need to find the funds to cover those expenses.
Dear Friends, Shirley’s path to recovery will be a long one. Dan is doing an amazing job of taking care of her and juggling work and home responsibilities while she’s recovering, but even with the help of friends, the stress is taking its toll. We are seeking to raise at least $40,000 to help cover their expenses from this accident. Would you consider donating to support these two amazing people?
Not only has Shirley been by Dan’s side these past 42 years ministering to inmates and former inmates, they are both amazing musicians who have blessed people all around the world with their gift of music. Our prayers are that Shirley will fully recover, that she will continue to serve alongside Dan as they minister to the prison population, and that we will be able to hear her sing again…
