Exceptional Women: Skye and Katie Barkschat
*With an Exceptional Man in their midst, Neil Barkschat!

Find their story on the web at: www.reachforthesky.com

Email:skyesrents@gmail.com

Website: www.reachforthesky.org

Carepages.com - Skye's page is - sbarkschat

Beautiful daughter Skye

and beautiful mama, Katie

On Monday, March 26th, 2007 around 7:40 in the evening, Skye and her boyfriend, Ben, were riding their bicycles home from the grocery store. It was a casual one mile trip through a quiet residential neighborhood for Skye and Ben, both experienced mountain and road cyclists.  Just blocks from their apartment, Skye, for unknown reasons, lost control of her bike and fell, hitting her head on the pavement, putting her in a coma

In that blink of an eye, Skye’s life and the lives of all who love her changed forever.

With Ben at her side, Skye was rushed to Mission Hospital where she was taken in for emergency surgery within 40 minutes. CAT scans showed she suffered significant head trauma with bleeding and swelling in her brain.  Skye was facing the fight of her life.  She pulled through surgery, but doctors gave little hope that she would survive overnight.  Family and friends stood watch and prayed that night as Skye defied the odds. The ripples extended across the country and worldwide as loved ones created a wide net of love and support for Skye.  Since the accident, Skye, in her indomitable spirit, has faced and overcome many, many more challenges, including many additional surgeries and an infection. 

Over one year later, Skye and her family are traveling the long and arduous path of rehabilitation and recovery. She faces rigorous challenges on a daily basis, and she meets them with the grace, strength, courage and spirit that make her an inspiration to all of us.

Before the accident Skye was a compassionate, courageous, vibrant 26 year old woman who grabbed life1` with both hands and touched so many lives in so many positive ways. She enriched the lives of autistic children through her work as a therapist, attended to the emotional and physical comfort needs of Hispanic women in labor as a doula, worked with young children at an orphanage in Costa Rica and empowered immigrant adolescents to express themselves through photography. She also had a passion for environmental issues and community building.  At every turn, Skye looked for meaningful ways to reach out to others and give back generously to her community.

With her recent career changes, Skye was in between major medical policies and was uninsured at the time of the accident. Skye's situation inspired the creation of Reach for the Skye, Inc., a 501c3 nonprofit to assist individuals who have suffered traumatic brain injury while pursuing their passion the opportunity to regain the highest possible level of functioning in their lives. The mission of Reach for the Skye is to provide funds when other resources, such as private insurance, Medicare or Medicaid are not available or have been
exhausted.

The long-term cost of care for one person with a severe traumatic brain injury has been estimated at $4.1 to $9 million by the National Head Injury Foundation (NHIF). It is not uncommon for a person with a severe TBI to require 5-10 years of rehabilitation and followup services. The real need in funding is for the range of services and goods that are lifelong including alternative treatments, rehabilitation tools, accessible transportation, community re-entry programs, home modifications, personal assistance/attendant care, etc. When other resources are not available, Reach for the Skye will provide "above and beyond" funding to make otherwise unattainable goods and services available.

An invitation from Corrie:

Every gift, no matter how small or large, makes a meaningful difference in the life of a young woman whose very presence and love is changing the lives everyone she touches, and in so doing - changing the world.

Tax deductible donation may be made to ReachForTheSkye.org

Skye's favorite book: Hands down, is Poisonwood Bible

She also loves a quaint little book we read to her when she was young and she usually keeps several copies around to give away.  It's Opal-The Journal of an Understanding Heart by Opal Whiteley. It's an adaptation of a journal kept by a 6 year old orphan at the turn of the century. 

Favorite Quotes:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. - Marianne Williamson

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face...Do the thing you think you cannot do.
Eleanor Roosevelt

My family and the Barkschats - we've "grown up" together. Back in the day we raised roofs hand in hand, dished up pot-lucks, spread blankets under star-filled skies for family parties.

They have seen my less than graceful moments, can't say that I have ever seen theirs!

It is with love in my heart that I want to share their gifts and their story with my beloved visitors and readers.

- Corrie, May 2008