Jamie Ulshoffer was enjoying a music festival with her husband when a man suddenly fell from a nearby tree and landed directly on her. What followed left the Tennessee woman hospitalized with a devastating spinal injury that has changed her life.
The couple had been standing near the back of a tent at the Louder Than Life festival in Kentucky when the accident happened. Her husband, Conor Ulshoffer, said he turned around and saw Jamie lying on her back before people around them realized someone had fallen from the tree.
Per People, the Louisville Metro Police Department reported that a tree limb broke, causing the man to fall onto Jamie. Officers nearby immediately provided first aid before emergency medical crews transported her to the hospital.
She woke up with no feeling in her feet
Jamie was taken to UofL Hospital after the accident and remains in intensive care. The injury severed her spinal cord, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down.
The woman said she does not remember the impact itself. Her memory picks up with her waking in a hospital bed, leaving her to piece together what happened from those around her.
Jamie has been blunt about the circumstances surrounding the fall. “He shouldn’t have been up there,” she said, adding that climbing the tree after it had rained was a “stupid decision.”
Despite the anger and pain surrounding the accident, Jamie said she has chosen to forgive the man who fell on her. Her comments came as she confronted the possibility that her injuries could permanently prevent her from doing many things she once took for granted.
“I’m not going to be able to play with the kids,” Jamie said in a report by WHAS. “I can’t feel my feet. Can’t do anything that I used to.” A GoFundMe campaign created by her niece says it is likely she will never walk again.
Music had been an important part of Jamie and Conor’s relationship long before the accident. The couple met while line dancing, and Jamie said they share a love for “all types” of music.
Conor has remained at her side throughout her hospitalization. Jamie said she has repeatedly asked him if he is going to leave her, and his answer has remained the same: “He says he’s not.”
Her family is now working to make Jamie’s home accessible for her return. That includes preparing for the changes she will need after leaving the hospital, as her recovery continues.
Published: Sep 21, 2026 03:30 pm