FALLBROOK -- It's been three years since a skiing accident left Teresa Hukari paralyzed from the shoulders down, unable to enjoy the outdoor pursuits that had shaped her life for decades.
Worlds apart from her previous lifestyle of seeking out adventure atop mountains throughout the western U.S., Hukari's new routine involves hours of therapy and learning to do simple tasks all over again.
But some of her best friends will try to help her by hosting a fundraiser at 6 p.m. Saturday in Fallbrook with music, a live auction and an inspirational message. Their goal is to collect $10,000 to help pay for Hukari's ongoing therapy and living expenses.
"Three years seems like a long time, but your progress comes in such baby steps that it doesn't feel like very long at all, in a way," Hukari said Friday. "I'm still learning how to live in this totally foreign way of getting around in the world."
A former employee of San Diego-based outdoor company Adventure 16, Hukari said she made many lifelong friends who shared her love for rock climbing, skiing, and various other outdoor activities.
Among them was Fallbrook resident Sunniva Sorby, a former Adventure 16 instructor who has been to Antarctica 18 times, twice with high-profile expeditions, and has skied across Greenland.
Sorby, who moved to Fallbrook nine months ago, organized the fundraiser to be held at the Hilltop Center, 331 E. Elder St. near downtown Fallbrook. It is open to anyone for a suggested donation of $20, Sorby said.
"My expedition across the Antarctic is no different from the expedition Teresa's on right now -- it's just that I picked mine, she didn't get to pick hers," Sorby said.
With dozens of fellow adventurers and thrill-seekers expected to attend Saturday's event, she said. "It's going to be a reunion, it's going to be raising money, it's going to be building community, and it's going to be having fun doing those three things."
Sorby said she still remembers where she was when she found out about Hukari's injury.
"I was in Laguna Beach with some friends, I was walking down Main Street, and I got a phone call from a good friend who told me what happened, and the potential severity of it," she said. "I was beside myself in that moment. It was just incomprehensible to think that she would be stopped from doing that stuff that she loved so much."
Several local businesses have donated items to be auctioned off, and the list includes trips to Scotland, Utah and Idaho, Sorby said.
"We're going to show off Fallbrook through the raffles, prizes and auction," she said.
Contact staff writer Tom Pfingsten at (760) 740-3516 or tpfingsten@nctimes.com.
