The Snellville woman who battled a rare flesh-eating disease that nearly cost her life and led to multiple amputations is making major strides in rehab, and a special wing being built for her at home is coming along nicely as well, her father said Tuesday.
Aimee Copeland has been recovering from her ordeal at an east Georgia rehabilitation center since early June, but she may be home Aug. 22, her father Andy Copeland told Channel 2 Action News on Tuesday.
Copeland updated his daughter's progress in a recent post on his blog, where he's been documenting her recovery.
The 24-year-old University of West Georgia student suffered a deep cut May 1 when she fell from a broken zip-line over the Little Tallapoosa River near Carrollton. She then contracted a rare infection called necrotizing fasciitis, which caused doctors to amputate her leg, foot and both hands.
When she returns home, she will be greeted by a new 1,900-square-foot wing at her family home that is being donated by national home builder Pulte Homes. The wing will be completed in the next two weeks, Andy Copeland told Channel 2.
On Tuesday, Home Depot workers were volunteering on their day off to help rebuild the kitchen for Copeland. They were installing new cabinets, countertops and appliances that will allow Copeland to do as much as she can on her own.
"We're going to replace it with a kitchen that's ADA compliant so she will get around the kitchen," Jon Klemence, manager at a Snellville Home Depot, told Channel 2.
Contractors also removed walls and opened up space for Copeland who, at first, will rely on a wheelchair to get around.
Andy Copeland told Channel 2 about his daughter's remarkable progress in rehab. "She's doing two hundred crunches in about seven minutes, four hundred leg lifts in the same amount of time, and an untold number of push-ups," he said.
She also is adapting quickly to prosthetics and is learning to conquer new challenges, her father told Channel 2. He said Copeland is looking forward to a quiet homecoming in the next few weeks.
Klemence told Channel 2 that Aimee Copeland inspires people to want to help her family.
"Just listening to the passion she has, how she works every day to get out of the hospital. It's just amazing. It really does drive you to do anything for them," he said.
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