‘You fought for me and I fought for you’: Crash leaves Omaha mother fighting to survive
By Samantha Pastorino
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OMAHA, Nebraska (KETV) — A crash puts a soon-to-be mother’s life at risk. Leaving her fighting to keep her baby alive but living with a traumatic brain injury, too.
Kate Via has spent the days before the birth of her first son re-learning how to function.
Life for Kate wasn’t always like this.
The 23-year-old married the love of her life last April. A few months later, they learned a baby was on the way.
But everything changed on the evening of Nov. 21, 2024.
When Kate went on a drive to pick up a pregnancy craving — ingredients to make an Orange Julius.
“Got a call from the chaplain at Bergan Mercy, saying our daughter Kate was in a horrific accident with life-threatening injuries,” said Kate’s parents, Chryssi and Steve Zeleny.
Kate was 20 weeks pregnant.
“Every parent’s worst nightmare,” Chryssi said
Her car collided with a semitrailer. The crash would later be deemed no fault.
Paramedics rushed Kate to Bergan Mercy with four brain bleeds, damage to her carotid arteries, and a long list of bone fractures.
“The moment I saw her, it was like the room was empty. I remember just kind of hitting my knees next to her,” said Kate’s husband, Josh Via.
Despite the long list of injuries, doctors say somehow, the baby made it through the crash unharmed.
Kate remained in critical condition for weeks. Doctors put her in a medically induced coma.
“I remember asking specifically to the neurosurgeon, I said, ‘Is my daughter going to survive?’ And the neurosurgeon said, ‘Your daughter’s brain is very ill,'” Chryssi said.
Kate’s family struggled with the thought she may not recover.
“Being told there’s a good chance that she wouldn’t make it,” Josh said.
Kate’s family was by her bedside every moment, each day as scary as the last.
It wasn’t until a month later, when doctors lowered Kate’s sedation levels to test brain activity, that her family finally saw a glimpse of their girl.
“I asked my mom and dad, ‘What happened to me? Why am I here?'” Kate said.
Kate’s first thoughts, when she came out of the coma, focused on her loved ones.
“Her first word was ‘baby’ after she came out, ‘baby’ and then ‘mom,'” Josh said.
It was at this moment that doctors discovered Kate had a fighter on her side: her unborn baby.
“They said the baby saved me a little bit,” Kate said.
Doctors said Kate’s higher blood pressure from pregnancy and stem cells from the unborn baby played a part in her miraculous survival.
But waking up was just the first step toward discovering her new normal.
She could still barely speak and couldn’t walk.
“I’d sit up and just fall,” Kate said.
With a baby coming in three months, Madonna Rehabilitation needed to help her get prepared.
Every day, Kate gave it her all.
“Her drive is amazing. She’ll have a story to tell this baby. To say you fought for me, and I fought for you,” Chryssi said.
She celebrated milestones, like her first steps, while simultaneously celebrating revealing the sex of the baby — something she got to share with her two sisters, who are also expecting.
“Having to relearn everything while being pregnant — it’s incredible,” Josh said.
Kate is still relearning some skills, but nurses say she’s improving every day.
“It’s a marathon, not a race. I’ll get there, to where I was before,” Kate said.
Kate moved to outpatient therapy last month.
“I’m just excited to see this little guy. I don’t know what to expect, but I know it’s going to be a blessing. There are challenges to come, but I’m ready to face and weather,” Josh said about the birth of their child.
Josh and Kate were expecting their baby boy on March 25th, but he came early and was born Sunday night.
Both Kate and baby Isaac are in stable condition.
Kate’s family has set up a donation fund to help the couple.
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