Joliet Teacher Breaks Neck In Lockport Car Accident: GoFundMe

LOCKPORT, IL — A Joliet elementary school teacher was severely injured in a car accident Friday Jan. 3, in Lockport, according to a GoFundMe created for her medical expenses. Donna Zawisza-Dineen, a 4th grade teacher at Thomas Jefferson Elementary in District 86, fractured her neck in the accident, which involved an accused drunken driver hitting her car head-on.

The drunk driving victim's daughter-in-law, Jessica Dineen, said Donna lives on the border of Plainfield and Joliet off of Theodore Street & County Line Road. She was returning from a visit to Dineen's home around noon when the accident occurred. The victim's C2 vertebra was fractured, an often-fatal injury. Dineen said her mother-in-law was "so lucky" not to have needed surgery after the incident.

All the same, Donna will likely require an extended regimen of physical therapy to fully heal, which may impact her ability to work full time. This is a problem, as Dineen said Donna is a primary income-earner for her family. There has been no word yet from AFT Local 604 - the Teachers' Union Donna is a part of - if they will be able to offer her financial assistance.

Dineen also said the family is hesitant to file suit against the drunk driver, as they would have difficulty affording legal fees. The drunk driver was also uninsured at the time of the incident, meaning he may not have the available funds to cover Donna's expenses anyway.

"From what I heard from my father-in-law, who was in contact with the officer [on the case], [the drunk driver] was uninsured and unlicensed," Dineen said. "That was a really difficult thing for them to hear because usually the insurance would cover it."

With all this in mind, A GoFundMe has been created to help with Donna's medical expenses as well as the cost of replacing her car. Donna's daughter Katie was also in the car, and she has been treated and discharged from the hospital.

"After he was arrested, we learned the driver of the other vehicle is uninsured, does not hold a valid license and was fleeing the scene of another [accident] he had caused..." the GoFundMe says.

The other driver struck Donna's car head-on and it set on fire.

"I just want her to take care of herself," Dineen said, "and not have to worry about how she's going to get back to work and trying to figure out how she's going to pay her bills."

The fundraiser has raised $130 of a $10,000 goal as of Tuesday.

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