Oak Harbor Elementary School employees rallied around one of their own to help pay for a surgery that her insurance company refused to cover.
Alison Swain, a paraeducator who works with special needs students, is described by her coworkers as selfless, generous and cheerful. Swain was born with a rare medical condition called Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome with primary lymphedema, which causes extreme swelling and pain in her left leg.
Corin Boswell, a secretary at the elementary school who has known Swain for eight years, said she had no idea about the condition until Swain created a Facebook page documenting her medical journey.
“She does not like to draw attention to it. She does not like to tell people that she’s in pain,” Boswell said. “I had zero idea.”
Swain shared on the Facebook page that she found out about a surgery that would reduce inflammation and pain in the affected leg and had begun the process to receive it.
“It would be a vast improvement in my quality of life,” Swain said of the procedure.
Unfortunately, she soon discovered that her insurance company would not pay for the surgery. If she wanted the procedure, she would have to foot the $17,000 bill out of pocket.
When Boswell and second grade teacher Nicole Ritter found out Swain’s insurance had denied to cover the surgery, they took matters into their own hands. Though Swain said it was difficult for her to accept help from her friends, they wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“Any of us would write a check for her whole surgery if we could,” Ritter said. “She’s just someone that just so deserves it.”
Ritter, Boswell and other Oak Harbor Elementary School employees set up an online fundraiser which received donations from school staff and other community members. They managed to raise all the money needed to cover the surgery in less than a month.
“I’m beyond grateful,” Swain said. “It’s overwhelming to have the support and the love and the kindness that I’ve received from all over the place, both here in my school and out in town and beyond.”
The fundraiser made state news when it was covered in a TV feature by King 5.
