When she was hired as an assembler at Breed Technologies, after years of working for a temporary agency, Sandra Michael felt she had security at last. This year's holiday appeal marks the 32nd year of The Ledger's Newspaper with a Heart campaign. There are no overhead costs.
Gifts are tax-deductible.
Security lasted two months. In August 1999, Michael went on what she thought would be short-term leave for a lung problem that surfaced after a bout of bronchitis earlier that year. More than a year later, she still can't work, despite three procedures to drain fluid from her left lung and surgery to keep the lung expanded. Fluid keeps returning, making her chest hurt and leaving her gasping at the slightest exertion. I can't bend down.