Family and friends are trying to raise money for a Northern Heights teacher who was caught overseas with an unexpected medical crisis.
Kristi Karr Morgan, the high school’s VPL teacher, was traveling in Europe with family when she became sick, said Kim Karr of rural Lyon County, whose husband is Morgan’s cousin. She was with her husband, Darryl; her father, Bob, who owns The Orchard; and her daughter, Sarah. They had visited family in Germany and had arrived in Finland to visit Matthew Watt, Morgan’s son. The group had about three days left in their two-week trip.
“She was sick, so Darryl took her to the hospital, emergency room or clinic,” Karr explained.
Morgan was diagnosed with pneumonia, but the chest X-ray was considered irregular and a CAT scan was done.
“They found a tumor around or on her lung,” Karr said.
Then the situation became even more complicated.
Morgan’s health insurance doesn’t cover the treatment or bills she received overseas. And getting home wasn’t as simple as asking the airline to change the departure dates on their tickets.
“You can’t fly commercially if you’re on oxygen,” Karr explained.
On Wednesday, the family found a flight that would take Morgan and a nurse. She’s now admitted to Cornell Medical Center in New York, awaiting more tests. Her husband, Darryl, stayed with her there while the rest of the family returned to Emporia.
While they wait for the New York pulmonologist and other doctors to arrive at a more definitive diagnosis, the family is working to help raise money to pay the uncovered expenses that already total $20,000.
Donations are being accepted at any Lyon County State Bank branch for the Kristi Karr Morgan Medical Fund. The donations are not tax deductible.
Karr said the funds raised would go to “anything involved with coming over, expenses incurred while in Finland and living expenses for Darryl while he’s in New York.”
Meanwhile, family and friends wait for more news.
“We’re all thinking positively,” Karr said.