Valley nurse seriously hurt in Colorado crash looking for family home

PHOENIX - It’s been a whirlwind year for Jennifer McColley, the longtime Valley nurse who worked in the frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

After her SUV rolled over 150 feet down a cliff while she was in Colorado for a camping trip, she broke her ribs, her back and lost her sight.

For nearly two months, she stayed in a Colorado hospital.

She feared she’d never walk again.

Family members raised money and flew her back to Arizona. After several surgeries and months of intense rehab and therapy, McColley is regaining strength.

She can move around in a wheelchair and a walker and some of her eyesight has been restored.

McColley is ready to take her recovery to the next level, but living in her mother’s house is a challenge.

"The way this house was built years ago, I’m so grateful my mom helped get me out of the hospital. But I can’t fit my wheelchair through any of the bathroom doors. The half bathroom, I can’t get in to brush my teeth or use the facilities," she said.

She hopes to find a one-story home near Deer Valley Road by the time her children go back to school in the fall.

"I thought that I wouldn’t be able to be on my own again and get my kids back like we used to have our normal life. I know that it’s possible," she said.

She knows she has a long road ahead of her, but says if she can find a suitable home for her family, she can get back on track in the medical field.

"I’m sick of being on the patient side of things. I want to be back on the nursing side of things," she said.

If anyone is willing to help her and her family out with housing, contact foxphoenixpress@fox.com.