Lucinda Mullins lay on her Kentucky home’s bathroom floor last month in excruciating pain from a kidney stone. She was vomiting and had developed a fever and back pain, so she yelled for her husband, DJ, to help.
Washington
Her kidney stone was infected. She’ll lose her legs and arms to survive.
Her kidney stone had become infected and caused sepsis, the immune system’s extreme attempt to fight an infection, which can cause organ failure and death. Doctors gave Mullins medication that sent all her blood flowing to her organs — and restricted it from her less vital arteries in her legs and arms.
After more than a week of treatment, doctors told Mullins that her key organs were healthy. But there was another problem: The tissue in her legs and forearms had died and parts of the limbs needed to be amputated.
“If that was the sacrifice that I had to make to be alive,” Mullins, 41, told The Washington Post, “I was okay with it.”
Mullins’s legs were amputated from above her knees last month, and she began physical therapy on Tuesday to prepare for prostheses. She said everything below her elbows will be amputated near the end of January.
Doctors “give you that rare chance of something bad happening … but I would have never dreamed [of this],” Mullins said.
Mehdi Shishehbor, the president of an Ohio hospital’s heart and vascular institute, said that kidney stone infections rarely lead to amputations. Some patients are treated and cured of sepsis — which can result from many illnesses and infections — with antibiotics, he said.
However, Shishehbor said that amputations are a better outcome than many of his sepsis patients experience. Nearly 270,000 people in the United States die of sepsis annually, according to the National Institutes of Health.
“Saving the life is more important than losing a limb,” Shishehbor said, “even though nobody wants to lose a limb.”
Mullins said she was diagnosed with kidney stones just over a year ago.
A urologist removed a stone in her left kidney in October, but the stone in her right kidney didn’t require immediate surgery, Mullins said. The urologist gave her a stent, a small plastic tube that helps urine move from the kidney to the bladder, in hopes of making it easier to eventually remove the stone, Mullins said.
After she took out the stent a few days later, Mullins said she felt sick. DJ drove her to Ephraim McDowell Fort Logan Hospital in Stanford, Ky., where Mullins answered doctors’ questions before she started to feel lightheaded — a sepsis symptom.
Mullins’s blood pressure was low, and a CT scan showed that her kidney stone was infected and her organs were failing. A few hours later, she was taken by ambulance to a UK HealthCare hospital in Lexington, Ky.
Doctors there placed Mullins on a ventilator and gave her dialysis, which removes excess water and toxins from blood when the kidneys are not working. Mullins was sedated for about a week while doctors treated her and tried to save her legs with an unsuccessful fasciotomy — a procedure to restore blood flow to dying tissue. Mullins doesn’t remember much from that week, but she said her family members — who made T-shirts that said #LucindaStrong — were scared she was going to die.
On Dec. 18, Mullins was laying in her bed when she asked a doctor to not sugarcoat her situation. He said that she needed amputations but would live.
On Dec. 19, Mullins went into surgery and awoke about five hours later without legs. The following day, Mullins said she cried when she saw her sons — 12-year-old Teegan and 7-year-old Easton — for the first time in nearly two weeks.
Mullins said she’s typically independent, but for a few days after surgery, DJ carried her around the hospital and fed her. Her twin sister, Luci, helped Mullins bathe in what they called “spa day.” Easton brushed his mom’s hair and applied her lip balm. She soon learned to use a wheelchair.
About a week after her amputation, Mullins said she went into surgery to remove the kidney stone. She feared something would go wrong, causing more health problems, but the procedure went smoothly. She and DJ couldn’t believe such a small mass had created so many problems.
On Monday, Mullins was transferred to Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital in Lexington. She’s strengthening her core, practicing moving from her bed to her wheelchair and stretching what remains of her legs and arms. Her hands, which she said “shriveled up” after the blood flow never returned, will be amputated later this month.
In about four months, Mullins said she plans to add prostheses for her upper and lower body. She hopes to eventually return as a nurse at an OB/GYN practice in Stanford.
Mullins’s friend created an online fundraiser to help pay for an elevator, a walk-in shower and other renovations for Mullins’s house. She’s scheduled for more surgeries and rehab over the next few months, but she said she’s looking forward to eventually returning home and seeing her sons every day.
“[I’ve learned] not to take my time or my family or my friends or anything for granted,” Mullins said.
On a perfect day in Seattle for football, Washington took the field inside Husky Stadium for its first scrimmage of spring practice, and ahead of his third season at the helm, Jedd Fisch seemed pleased with the results.
“Guys played and competed their ass off,” he said after the Huskies ran 120 plays. “That’s the type of day we want to have…We have a lot to work on, but we’re excited that today gave us this opportunity.”
The 120 plays had a little bit of everything, but the biggest thing the Huskies showed during the day was that, despite the inexperience that Fisch’s coaching staff is looking to lean on at several positions, there’s plenty of talent littering the roster. The best example of that is sophomore safety Paul Mencke Jr., who had his best practice in a Husky uniform after Fisch announced on Saturday that senior CJ Christian is out for the year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon during Tuesday’s practice at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
“Paul’s done a great job of competing and being physical and playing fast, and you could see over these three years, he’s really grown into understanding now the system, and what’s asked of him as a safety,” Fisch said. “I think there’s a lot of in him that he wants to be like (safeties coach Taylor) Mays. He sees himself as a tall, linear, big hitter. So when you have your coach that is known for that type of play, I think Paul has done a great job.”
Mencke was all over the field. Not only did he lay some big hits, just like his safeties coach did during his time at USC, but the former four-star recruit also tallied a pair of pass breakups, an interception in a 7-on-7 period, and multiple strong tackles to hold ball carriers to limited yards.
While the defense did a good job getting pressure throughout the day and making the quarterbacks hold the ball with different looks on the back end, with safety Alex McLaughlin, linebacker Donovan Robinson, and edge rusher Logan George all among the players credited for a sack, quarterback Demond Williams Jr. got an opportunity to show off how he’s improved ahead of his junior year.
Early on, he showed off his well-known speed and athleticism, making the correct decision on a read option, pulling the ball and scampering for a 25-yard gain before displaying his touch. Throughout the day, his favorite target was junior receiver Rashid Williams, whom he found on several layered throws of 15-plus yards in the various scrimmage periods of practice.
On a day when every able-bodied member of the team was able to get several reps of live action, here are some of the other noteworthy plays from the day.
Spring practice notebook
- Freshman cornerback Jeron Jones was unable to participate in the scrimmage and was spotted working off to the side with the rest of the players rehabbing their injuries.
- The running backs delivered a pair of big blows on the day. First, cornerback Emmanuel Karnley was on the receiving end of a big hit from redshirt freshman Quaid Carr before the former three-star recruit ripped off a 13-yard touchdown run on the next play. Later on, every player on offense had a lot of fun cheering on freshman Ansu Sanoe after he leveled Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, letting the sophomore linebacker hear all about it when the play was whistled dead.
- Sophomore wide receiver Justice Williams put together a strong day with several contested catches, showing off his strong hands and 6-foot-4 frame, including a 25-yard catch and run off a drag route from backup quarterback Elijah Brown.
- Of all the tackles for a loss the Huskies were able to rack up throughout the day, two stood out. First, junior defensive tackle Elinneus Davis burst through the middle of the line to wrap up freshman running back Brian Bonner. Later on, freshman outside linebacker Ramzak Fruean wasn’t even touched as he shot through a gap in the offensive line to track down a play from behind, letting the entire offensive sideline know about the play on his way back to his own bench.
- The Huskies experimented with several defensive line combinations on Saturday, and for the first time this spring, it felt like freshman Derek Colman-Brusa took the majority of his reps alongside someone other than Davis, who he said has taken on an older brother role to help mentor the top-ranked in-state prospect in the 2026 class.
“Elinneus is a phenomenal guy. Great work ethic. He’s kind of taken on that older brother mentor for me. He’s been a great help just to learn plays and learn the scheme. Can’t say enough good things about the guy.”
- Ball State transfer Darin Conley took a handful of reps with the first team, while rotating with Colman-Brusa, who got a lot of work in alongside Sacramento State transfer DeSean Watts.
Twenty Sioux Falls School District art teachers have their own original pieces on display at the Washington Pavilion’s University Gallery now through May 31.
The “Teachers as Artists” exhibit showcases their work not just as educators, but as artists inside and outside of the classroom, and highlights how art education builds critical thinking, creative problem-solving and self-expression skills.
Edison Middle School art teacher Meagan Turbak-Fogarty said she dreamt of such a showcase since her first year teaching.
She and Kathy Dang, an art teacher at Marcella LeBeau Elementary School who also serves on the city’s Visual Arts Committee, partnered with the city and Washington Pavilion to bring the showcase to life.
Turbak-Fogarty has taught at Edison for five years and said her passion for art is “instantly felt” on her classroom walls, but that students have asked where they could see her art in the classroom, or what kind of art she creates in her own time.
“I always felt the feeling that I stand in front of all these kids every single day and preach about how much I love art, and how art has changed my life,” Turbak-Fogarty said. “That got me thinking, ‘I want to show them.’”
Some of her works on display at the Pavilion include art she created in her first year teaching, including a large Cheetos bag she created as an example for her eighth grade classroom when they were working on a large chip bag project. Turbak-Fogarty said she loves painting, working with acrylics and unconventional materials.
“I wanted to show my students that art can be anything,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be hanging up in a museum to be considered art.”
Continuing to do her own art while teaching the subject helps keep her inspired, Turbak-Fogarty explained, adding that it helps her push her own creativity when it comes to projects she works on with students.
Samantha Levisay, an art teacher at John Harris Elementary School, showed three pieces in the show — “Moments in Time,” “Midnight Butterfly Garden” and “Whimsy” — with the same mixed media, watercolor and printmaking skills that she teaches in different units at every elementary grade.
Levisay educates her students that “art is everywhere.” She said her favorite memories as an art teacher are “moments when I show students a lesson, and they take it even further.”
“Kids are so creative; I marvel at them all the time,” she said. “They inspire me every day with their endless creativity and imagination.”
Roosevelt High School art teacher Ruth Hillman showed two pieces in the show: “The Potato on the Wall,” a mixed media work, and a collection of her handmade clay charms in a shadow box.
She also wore some of her art — miniature potato earrings made of clay.
Hillman is in her third year at RHS. When she’s not teaching art, she’s also making art, and sells her charms at shows like the Art Collective.
Washington High School art teacher Mollie Potter displayed a three-part painting series at the show that she said were inspired by her English language learner students’ stories, and how teachers help students “take flight,” as represented by balloons, parachutes and kites in her work.
Porter said she is often inspired by her students’ art in the classroom; for example, one former student was obsessed with swans, and Porter said she later created a painting inspired by one of the student’s stories about swans.
At an April 17 reception, Mayor Paul TenHaken emphasized the arts as an “important economic driver in the community,” and said the show honored educators “who are artists in and of themselves,” but who might not have had a chance to display their art outside the classroom before.
“This is a way for us to honor them and show their incredible work,” TenHaken said.
Full Episode:
Washington Week with The Atlantic full episode, 4/17/26
Donald Trump has achieved what he’s achieved to date by being more rhetorically reckless, blunter and more insulting than any president in memory. But are there any limits? Join moderator Jeffrey Goldberg, Leigh Ann Caldwell of Puck, Stephen Hayes of The Dispatch, and Jonathan Lemire and Michael Scherer of The Atlantic to discuss this and more.
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