Please Support Kelsey's Recovery Journey from White Island Eruption

Hello everyone!

I hope you’re all keeping safe and well during these interesting times.

I still haven’t heard about my surgery yet! But fingers crossed I will hear sometime this week (I’ve been saying that for the last two-weeks, but maybe it’s third time lucky 🍀 ).

I’ve been flat-out with appointments over the last month, and I had to be remeasured up for new pressure garment gloves, sleeves and high-waisted pants. So far, the best ones to wear are the sleeves (because its winter and it helps keep my arms warm). The gloves are fine - when they fit properly and they aren’t wet! Its quite a hard feat to keep them dry and clean on a farm 🤷🏼‍♀️ The pants are the most annoying - because they have to come up so high to get the graft on my lower back and stomach, they have a tendency of rolling down and slipping down, so I’m forever having to pull them up and readjust myself. A pain, but it’s manageable and not forever.

It was Tom’s birthday in August, and my family and I organised for him to go for a flight in a fighter jet! He had an amazing time, and the guys at Fighter Jets NZ were incredible. We also spent the night in Tauranga in a swanky hotel room right on the harbour. It was so nice to go away and have a bit of luxury for a night.

Hopefully we’ll be back there in November for a concert which keeps getting moved because of Covid.

We are starting to plan our future career moves, too! I won’t say too much right now because it’s still very early days and there is a lot to sort out in the next 9-months-ish. That, and I still have a surgery and a lot of recovering to do! But watch this space.

Work is well into planning a memorial for December 9th, but because of Covid, they are having to navigate the best way to mark the ‘occasion’(?) and also keep everyone safe. It’s rather overwhelming to think that it’s almost been a year since the eruption, and I know the day will be difficult for everyone. Including me. I’m finding it really hard to put together the words I could say to my colleagues, their families, and to those passengers and their loved ones who were injured or lost loved ones on the day. Maybe there are no words. But I’ll keep trying.

We have another busy month ahead of us, so I will update you all on how I’m going/when my next surgery is when I get a chance.

Love, Kelsey x