Before the snowmobile accident that brought her life to a halt, Meg Victory of Simsbury was a happily retired fifth-grade teacher and grandmother who had recently remarried after 30 years as a single mom.
The 62-year-old was looking forward to a future full of travel and adventure, starting with a family trip to New Hampshire in February 2024 that included a guided snowmobiling tour.
“I had never snowmobiled before, but I figured, ‘I can do that.’”
The tour was nearly over when Meg lost control of the sled on an icy road. As she swerved to avoid the guide ahead of her, she accidentally hit the throttle, sped up, and became wedged between two trees. The sudden stop launched Meg through and high over the windshield, flipping her over in the air before she landed hard on her right side.
At first, she thought she was okay.
“I remember thinking, I’m alive. I’m not in pain. But I really had no idea how badly I was hurt.”
As EMTs assessed her, the seriousness of her injuries became clear. She had a compound femur fracture that had to be pulled into traction on the trail. At the hospital, she learned she also had a broken humerus, a shattered elbow, and two broken wrists.
“The only part of my arms not wrapped and braced were the tips of my fingers and my right elbow,” she remembers.
After five surgeries and 12 days at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Meg transferred to Gaylord Hospital, encouraged by her friend and longtime Gaylord supporter Linda Morasutti.
“I was scared,” she recalls. “But I felt incredibly blessed to land at a place with such an outstanding reputation.”
In the early days of her recovery, even the simplest tasks felt impossible.
“I couldn’t put my foot on the floor. I had only one leg and one elbow to get out of bed. I often cried. But they told me, ‘You can do it.’ And little by little, I did.”
As a former special education teacher, Meg admired how creative and resourceful the therapists were.
“It was like Santa’s workshop. There were people buzzing in and out, trying different tools. If one thing didn’t work, they found another way. I watched them improvise on the spot. I was in awe.”
Recovery felt overwhelming at times, but Meg says it was the people around her who made all the difference, starting with Susanna, a PCT she calls “an angel from heaven.”
There was Chaplain Vince, who offered both faith and laughter. Alexx from recreational therapy, who brought joy and silliness on her hardest days. Blake in psychology, who helped her process the trauma and begin to find peace. David, a transporter, who believed in her from the very beginning and shared his wedding plans with her. Night nurses Janet and Michele, therapists Donna, Heidi, and Dan, who challenged her in the gym and never let her give up, and many others.
“They didn’t just treat me like a patient,” Meg says. “They saw me as a whole person. It wasn’t just about healing my body. It was about healing all of me.”
She remembers a particularly tough morning when the emotional weight of her injuries hit hard.
“I couldn’t stop crying. Then a young man from Food and Nutrition came in with my breakfast and said, ‘Ma’am, you’re going to be okay. I see what goes on here every day. You’re in the right place.’ That moment meant more than he’ll ever know.”
Meg is convinced there’s something special about the people who choose to work at Gaylord Hospital.
“This place is filled with people who truly care. You need a certain heart to work here. It’s not something you can just fake.”
Meg left Gaylord Hospital three months after the accident, walking with a hemi-walker and surrounded by staff who had become like family.
*Today, it is difficult to perceptibly notice the severity of her injuries only months earlier. She’s back to traveling and doing the things she loves. She has continued her therapy and strength training at a facility near home and looks forward to getting back to volunteering to deliver meals to people with cancer through Healing Meals, and taking part in an intergenerational program that pairs older adults with college students. She still keeps in touch with many of the people from Gaylord who changed her life.
“I get emotional talking about it, but Gaylord has become so dear to me. I don’t know where I’d be without this wonderful rehab facility. I’ll always be grateful for their role in my recovery,” Meg says.
“It’s not just a hospital, it’s a community.”
