A Gearhart woman was severely injured after a tree crushed her car on Feb. 24 as she and her family were driving home on U.S. Highway 26.

Tracey Wright, a first-grade teacher at Pacific Ridge Elementary School, was returning home with her husband Ronny and their daughter Elie. The trio had spent the weekend celebrating Tracey’s birthday, touring colleges for Elie and visiting Tracey and Ronny’s two sons at college.

Less than 15 miles from home, high winds from a storm knocked down a tree, which fell onto the front of the family’s SUV. Tracey, who was trapped in the vehicle, suffered a severe spinal injury.

Emergency response was delayed by over an hour due to other trees blocking the highway, but once responders reached the family, it became clear that Tracey needed to be taken to a Level 1 trauma center and she was sent to Legacy Emanuel in Portland. Ronny and Elie were transported to Providence Seaside Hospital, where they were treated for minor injuries and later .

As Ronny and Elie joined Tracey at her bedside, they learned she’d suffered a fracture to her spine, and she reported no feeling from the chest down.

Nissa Roberts, a longtime friend of the family, created a GoFundMe for the family’s expenses, which include medical and travel expenses and regular bills.

“Tracey was taken into surgery mid-afternoon on Tuesday with the hopes of fusing her spine and relieving pressure on the spinal cord itself,” she stated in an updated GoFundMe description. “Unfortunately the surgeons found that the repairs they’d hoped for were not possible; this means that Tracey will remain paralyzed.”

Jeff Roberts, Nissa’s husband, said Tracey and Ronny Wright are incredibly giving to those around them, and that the way the community has rallied around them has been a way to return the favor.

“I can remember vividly when we moved in the summer (of) 2011, to the beach from Portland, my wife and my daughter and I had a U-Haul,” he said. “It was like 96, 97 degrees at the Oregon coast, which doesn’t happen very often. And Ronny and Tracey were the ones to show up and help unload that.

“They have really been impactful folks in this community, in terms of raising their kids here and having friends and just being folks that are selfless. Selfless is the word that continues to come to mind.”

Calvin Pollard, a cousin to the Wrights, said Nissa and Jeff Roberts are the type of people to step into action when needed, especially for close friends like Tracey and Ronny Wright.

They’ve known each other for 30 years, ever since Nissa Roberts and Tracey Wright were sorority sisters together at Linfield College in Forest Grove.

The GoFundMe campaign, Pollard said, “ was the right thing to do for someone you’re close to. And they are very good at rallying the troops. They are definitely the right people for this unfortunate situation to assist our family and gather those funds for my aunt and our family.”

Pollard added that the family is grateful for everyone who has helped. Over $126,000 has been raised, 84% of the family’s goal. But they’ll need the support to continue as they heal, he said.

“The journey is going to be incredibly long for (Tracey), and the goal is to give them as much cushion as possible and as much time as possible to recover, so that they are not worried about external things that go into regular life,” Pollard said. “The community of Seaside, Gearhart, that whole area, is one of the best places I’ve ever seen when it comes to a community member having an incident like this, in terms of their response.

“The biggest piece is just that appreciation, that gratitude and continued support for them, which is going to extend past just funds. There’s a lot of needs coming down the line.”