Jessi currently is sightless in her right eye. She'll have corrective surgery on her left eye. It has third-nerve palsy, which controls eye movement. Her reconstructive surgery and other treatment will be covered by the Peace Corps medical plan. When word got out about Jessi, her large extended family and many friends rallied around her. A pancake breakfast fund-raiser was held Dec. 15 at Ferndale High. Toast restaurant in Ferndale "provided the product," said Ruben Griffin, 30, Jessi's oldest brother, who lives in Ferndale and is a chef at Toast. The initial impetus to raise money was Jessi's medical expenses, but the Peace Corps has pledged to cover them for at least the first 18 months. "They have been absolutely wonderful," said Nina Griffin, Jessi's stepmother. Funds raised have covered Jessi's needs, airfares to Africa and Kathryn's expenses during an unpaid leave from her employer, Credit Union One in Ferndale.
Peace Corps Volunteer Jessica (Jessi) Griffin is recovering after accident in Mozambique
Peace Corps teacher from Oak Park injured in Africa
February 10, 2008
BY ESTHER ALLWEISS INGBER
FREE PRESS SPECIAL WRITER
Life has taken a tough turn for Peace Corps teacher Jessica (Jessi) Griffin.
Severely injured in a car accident Nov. 17 in Africa, Griffin, 24, returned before Christmas to the Oak Park home she shares with her mother, Kathryn Wedhorn, 55, and brother, Colin Griffin, 26.
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When the crash happened, "I was actually in the best shape of my life," lamented Jessi, a yoga enthusiast who will turn 25 on Feb. 17. She regularly walked three miles each way between the primitive village where she lived and the high school in Mozambique where she taught. It was her first assignment for the Peace Corps.
Jessi, a graduate of Ferndale High and St. Mary's College of Notre Dame, Ind., taught biology to ninth- and 10th-graders. She had to become fluent quickly in their language, Portuguese. After her initial 27-month stint, she had chosen to stay on for nine more months. She was due to go home at the end of January.
The morning of the accident, Jessi uncharacteristically rode to school with a neighbor couple.
"Another driver turned in front of us and our Toyota Corolla went under her Land Rover," she said. The husband was killed instantly, and his wife suffered broken legs, but the driver of the other car had only bumps and bruises.
Jessi nearly died. She suffered a crushing injury to her face, multiple fractures of her upper left arm, compression fractures of her vertebrae and fractured ribs.
Once Dr. Cedric Yoshimoto of the Peace Corps reassured Kathryn that Jessi was awake and talking, her mom announced, "I'm coming to the hospital. I need to be there."
Kathryn and Colin flew to Johannesburg and were transported to Jessi's hospital in Pretoria. Jessi was nearly unrecognizable -- swollen and black-and-blue eyes, hooked up to monitors and drips, feeding tube in her trachea, head shaved for the catheter inserted to monitor pressure in her skull.
"We went on either side of her and said, 'Hi,' " Kathryn recalled. "When she acknowledged us, that was hopeful to us."
Visitation was limited at first. "When the sisters (nurses) assured me Jessi's brain was working fine, I got teary," Kathryn said.
For her part, Jessi remembers nightmares and the shock of seeing her reflection a week after the accident. The family learned that Jessi initially responded only in Portuguese though the medical staff addressed her in English.
Kathryn's ex-husband, Dennis Griffin of Oak Park, also visited their daughter in Africa. "Doctors made an incision from ear to ear and pulled off her facial skin to rebuild her face," he said. "She got multiple plates and pins."
Jessi currently is sightless in her right eye. She'll have corrective surgery on her left eye. It has third-nerve palsy, which controls eye movement. Her reconstructive surgery and other treatment will be covered by the Peace Corps medical plan.
When word got out about Jessi, her large extended family and many friends rallied around her. A pancake breakfast fund-raiser was held Dec. 15 at Ferndale High. Toast restaurant in Ferndale "provided the product," said Ruben Griffin, 30, Jessi's oldest brother, who lives in Ferndale and is a chef at Toast.
The initial impetus to raise money was Jessi's medical expenses, but the Peace Corps has pledged to cover them for at least the first 18 months.
"They have been absolutely wonderful," said Nina Griffin, Jessi's stepmother.
Funds raised have covered Jessi's needs, airfares to Africa and Kathryn's expenses during an unpaid leave from her employer, Credit Union One in Ferndale.
Life for Jessi currently revolves around her doctor appointments, mostly at nearby Providence and Beaumont hospitals. Great friends like Sarah (Kantz) Leach of Oak Park help her to stay positive. Yet, Jessi admits to moments of frustration when she rails, "Why is this happening to me now?" She still hopes to take the Graduate Record Exam, attend grad school and major in international education.
Should her daughter return to Africa, Kathryn won't worry overly much. "A car accident can happen anywhere," she said. "Jessi is very responsible; I trust her."
As she heals, Jessi knows she's fortunate. " 'Thank you' seems a meager two words for how impressed I am by all the people who showed they cared," she said.
Donations may be sent to Jessica's Journey Foundation, c/o Credit Union One, 400 E. Nine Mile, Ferndale 48220.
