SEATTLE, Wash. — Diana James of Vancouver has been stuck in Braga, Portugal, since May — and now, her family says she’s finally back in the U.S. after suffering a brain bleed that sent her into a coma.
“One of the most gratifying experiences is to finally see this come to fruition,” said Megan Kunze, Diana’s daughter, about her arrival on Monday. “It feels surreal to finally be on this next chapter of this journey to get her medical treatment.”
Because of James’s medical state, she had to be transported by air ambulance back to the United States — something Kunze has been advocating for since the start of this ordeal.
“I think she was aware,” said Kunze. “She kind of gave me some kind of looks yesterday when we boarded that plane.”
Kunze says there was a point when the family was getting ready to move overseas to take care of James, saying the financial load to bring her home wasn't possible. But after 7 months and some 21 days of applying for a repatriation loan, the embassy finally approved their request.
Kunze flew back to Portugal after getting the news and planned to medically fly back with her mother.
That’s exactly what happened: They both traveled a little over 20 hours from Portugal to Seattle where the aircraft arrived on Monday night.
“I cried tears when we landed in Seattle and loaded her onto the ambulance to take her to the hospital,” said Kunze. “It was just a very emotional day for sure.”
But the road to get here wasn’t easy after James’s insurance company denied paying for the bill to medically transport her three separate times — leaving the family no other choice than to apply for a $144,000 loan.
“Even though she is home, our commitment to her doesn’t stop,” said Kunze. “We have to continue to fundraise; we have to continue to advocate for her care here in the U.S. and make sure that she gets the treatment that she needs.”
James is now at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, as they have a specialty program for neuro injuries.
Kunze says one day the family hopes their mother can live an independent life and once again be able to hug her grandchildren.
“We will write a book about this one day about this journey,” said Kunze, “and people will not believe the challenges that we faced.”
Kunze said the family plans to open up a nonprofit to help other families going through the difficult road they went through, adding that she hopes people learn from their situation. Those interested in helping can check out the family's GoFundMe and their website with resources and more of Diana's story.