From Deseret News archives:
Bringing Tori back
Utah teen going to China for stem-cell treatment
Especially if it will bring her back.
On Wednesday, Tim and Maria Schmanski will travel with their 16-year-old daughter, Tori, to Hangzhou, China, where she will receive stem cell treatment over a 32-day period at a Beike Biotechnology clinic.
"We're just trying to get more of the old Tori back," Tim Schmanski said.
One day can change everything
On June 19, 2005 — Father's Day — Tori was in a car with her younger sister and two cousins when the car rolled two times and landed upside down in a canal. Despite the water filling the interior, Tori was able to push her sister and cousin out of the submerged car but was not able to get herself out and remained trapped underwater for 15 minutes until rescuers arrived.
Tori had to be resuscitated twice on her way to the hospital. Her brain went without oxygen for an estimated 25 minutes, Tim Schmanski said.
Tori survived, and life has never been the same for the Schmanski family. Tori has brain damage — an anoxic brain injury, to be exact — leaving her unable to speak, eat or move her limbs. Her parents spent nine months with her in the hospital as she battled pneumonia, digestive problems, seizures and vomiting, switching nights sleeping in a chair at her side.
Neighbors, friends and family rallied to support the Schmanskis. Tori was a member of The Dance Club, an Orem-based dance company. It has dedicated competitions and donated proceeds of dance concerts to the Tori Schmanski fund. Many other donations to the fund through Tori's Web site (www.pray4tori.com) have been used to supplement health insurance for Tori's medical care. The Lindon-based company For Every Body has recently reintroduced its "Pray 4 Tori" candle to help fund the trip to China.
"If it wasn't for all the generous people who donated to the Tori Schmanski fund, I don't think this would have happened," Tim Schmanski said.
A different life
After the grief, the hospital and the change, the Schmanskis adjusted to life with a different Tori.
In March 2006, the Schmanski family was able to bring Tori home. Maria Schmanski quit her job as a travel consultant to become a full-time caregiver for Tori. Her days revolve around her daughter's needs. She said it takes 2 1/2 hours to get Tori ready for each day, from giving her medication to a head-to-toe sponge bath. She said she doesn't like to go further than 10 minutes away or leave Tori with someone else.
"She's unpredictable," Maria Schmanski said. "I don't want to put someone in that position. She has seizures, anxiety attacks, sudden pains, vomiting."
Life definitely has been different, Maria Schmanski said.
