MORE than £130,000 has been raised in less than a day to give a 23-year-old sports-loving Islander her independence back after she developed sepsis, leaving her a quadruple amputee.
The family of Lily McGarry, who remains in intensive care in the UK, said they were “staggered” by the community response to a fundraising page they set up to pay for prosthetics.
Lily was rushed to hospital after showing signs of a serious bacterial infection. The former JCG pupil then developed septicaemia, fell into a coma for two weeks and ultimately had to have all four of her limbs amputated.
The fundraiser her family set up raised more than £130,000 in the first 24 hours.
Lily’s mother, Joanne Gorrod, told the JEP that the level of support “had been fantastic”.
Getting to grips with life as an amputee will be a long process for Lily and her family.
“Lily will need some kind of assistance for the rest of her life,” Ms Gorrod said. “It’s now our role to help her become independent again.”
Ms Gorrod said Lily’s condition “came out of the blue”.
Lily was described as an avid sports lover with many connections to local clubs in Jersey.
“Lily was a very fit, healthy young woman and doing incredibly well,” her mum said.
Lily’s dad, Stuart McGarry, described the situation as “heartbreaking”, adding that family and friends flew in from all corners of the world to be with her when she became unwell.
But it was the quick actions of Lily’s medical student housemates that saved her life. On noticing early signs of the illness, they closely monitored Lily and made the decision to drive her to hospital.
“As soon as she arrived in A&E, that’s when the rash first appeared. She hadn’t presented with any other symptoms to that point,” her mother said.
“We’re forever grateful for that. We still have the gift of Lily with us,” she added.
Now in a stable condition in Swansea’s Morriston Hospital, Lily and her family can begin to plan for her future.
Praising the hospital staff for the care of her daughter, Ms Gorrod said they “bend over backwards” for Lily.
“There’s a lot of love in the room,” she added.
Lily’s mother said it would be many months before Lily was able to leave intensive care. But both of her parents emphasised that Lily’s determination gives them all hope.
“A lot of adaptations will be needed. She will probably spend quite a bit of her time in a wheelchair. We will have to adapt her car, her living space. There’s a huge amount to plan for her,” Ms Gorrod said.
Lily also wants to resume her studies with Cardiff University when she can.She was in her second year of training to become a doctor.
“It gets me emotional to think about how everyone’s responded,” Mr McGarry said. “We’d expected a big response, but it’s gone into overdrive.”
Having met their fundraising goal in a day, the family have increased their target to £250,000, which will go towards funding physiotherapy for Lily and buying specialist prosthetics which can cost in the region of £100,000 each. Any extra funds raised through the campaign will go to UK amputee charity Limb Power that supports individuals and families affected by limb loss.
Lily’s family asked for the public to avoid contacting Lily directly while she remains in a vulnerable position.
To donate, visit gofund.me/f1ec2899
