A Winnipeg woman remains unconscious after a horse-riding accident on Sunday near St. Malo. Her mom hopes that people see how dangerous not wearing a helmet can be.

On Sunday, June 17, Rebecca Fentum-Jones, 22, was on a trail ride with a horse she has ridden before. As the group was crossing a hard-top road, Fentum-Jones fell off the horse and hit her head on the ground. No one saw the accident happen, but it appears that the horse stumbled before causing Fentum-Jones to fall.

Another member of the group came to her aid and was able to properly assess the situation before calling for STARS Air Ambulance.

"As opposed to somebody who would see this happen and perhaps panic, she is a critical care nurse," said Rebecca's mother, Alison Fentum. "She's someone we're looking at as being such an important part of being where we are at now."

When Fentum-Jones arrived at Health Science Centre (HSC), she was unconscious and breathing on her own. Doctors put in a breathing tube to give her body support and sedated her to allow the body to begin healing and not struggle. Since Sunday, HSC doctors have been slowly weaning Fentum-Jones off the sedation, waiting for her to wake up so they can properly assess the damage.

"There are things that are happening (now)," Fentum said about her daughter. She has been told by the doctors, however, that all the things that are happening can't be classified as good. Instead, they are benchmarks towards waking up. Once Fentum-Jones is awake, the doctors can take the next step.

"I'm basically holding onto her character." ~ Alison Fentum

Fentum, who was very calm when questioned, says she wants to be in control of the situation. She says she will not fall apart because she wants to fix this.

"I'm just trying to deal with everything," Fentum admitted. "I'm having the idea of patience forced on me."

There has been an outpouring of support for the family. Fentum says they have received a number of encouraging words since this first happened. A friend also set up a GoFundMe page, which raised half of its $20,000 goal by Friday. The goal has since been updated to $40,000, saying that Fentum's mother will not be working and they have no idea what the physical or mental challenges will be once she is awake.

Fentum says her daughter's character has kept her going. She admits that she is a fighter and has been an athlete her whole life. Fentum also wanted to acknowledge Fentum-Jone's father and boyfriend, Todd Jones and Richie Rodgers, who have been in the hospital since the accident.

Mom encourages helmet use

The family also wants people to see how serious the decision to wear or not wear a helmet can be.

"We have heard, in this instance, had she been wearing a helmet, we would not be in this exact same position," Fentum said.

She hopes people will take their safety a bit more seriously, saying it could happen to anyone. She noted that Fentum-Jones has spent her life on horses, working with them for the past three years at her job and riding them long before that. Fentum says that means it can happen to anyone.

"It was completely an accident, it was unforeseeable," Fentum said. "It could have happened 50 other times and she could have just gotten up and walked away if certain circumstances were different."