Salem — Town officials on Saturday are hosting a pasta dinner and raffle to support Tonya Harris, a local woman who was seriously injured in a fatal January collision that involved five cars, two crashes and 13 people.

According to police reports, the first crash happened when Thomas Bysko of Oakdale, driving northbound along Old Colchester Road, attempted to pass Harris in his Toyota Camry.

Civil court records show Bysko attempted the pass in a “no passing zone,” somehow struck the rear driver-side bumper of Harris’ Toyota Rav-4 and then drove head-on into a Ford Fusion that was driving south.

Harris said in an affidavit related to an ongoing civil suit that she doesn’t remember all of the evening’s events, but she does know she asked her two children if they were OK, exited her vehicle and turned her attention to the car that had been hit head on. A woman, she recalled, was screaming about the condition of a younger female who had been in the car with her.

In the meantime, a fourth car, an Audi Q5, stopped near the crash.

That’s when a fifth driver, Frederick R. McKeehan, came upon the scene while traveling southbound in his Toyota Corolla. Records show he failed to slow down and careened into Harris’ vehicle, which in turn hit her. After the first crash, Harris’ SUV had come to a rest in the northbound lane.

McKeehan’s passenger, Carol McKeehan of Quaker Hill, died as a result of the collision.

Harris sustained “critical injuries to her entire body,” according to court records. She was unable to move her legs and arms in the immediate aftermath of the crash and has undergone multiple surgeries. Transported from the scene by Life Star to Hartford Hospital, she spent a total of 25 days there. Crews then moved her to Garylord Hospital, where she went through extensive physical therapy for several weeks. She recently was discharged.

According to the poster for Saturday’s pasta dinner, Harris still has “a long road to recovery.”

Formerly a pharmacy technician at Salem Health Mart Pharmacy and a personal care assistant with Allied Community Resources, Harris said in her affidavit she fears that if she doesn’t recover physically from the injuries she sustained, she won’t be able to perform the tasks involved in either job.

Harris is suing both Bysko and McKeehan for their roles in the crash, which remains under investigation.

Saturday’s benefit is just the latest in a series of things town residents have done to help Harris and her three children. The first was a GoFundMe page started by Pam Maziarz, who is heavily involved with the Salem MOMS Club. That page has raised more than $9,000 and remains open.

In comments left on the page a month ago, Harris thanked everyone for their support.

"I am so blessed that (I) have all you individuals praying for me, donating to me and thinking about me," she wrote. "God as my witness I will overcome this."

Not long after the page was created, the Salem Health Mart Pharmacy sold dozens of roses for Valentines Day and donated a portion of each sale to Harris and her family. Residents also signed up for a meal train shortly after the wreck to make sure the Harrises didn't go without food.

According to Maziarz, several other events, including a tag sale and a car show, are planned to benefit the family.

"This is how Salem rolls and has for years," Maziarz wrote in a January email detailing the town's response. "We love so fiercely, and are a family."

Saturday’s dinner will run from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Gardner Lake Fire Co. headquarters at 429 Old Colchester Road in Salem. The raffle, which will feature a painting by Harris, will follow the dinner.

l.boyle@theday.com

Those interested in attending can get tickets for $10 from:

• Gardner Lake Fire Co.: (860) 859-1743

• Joan Phillips: jphillips@salem.cen.ct.gov.

• Salem Fire Company: (860) 859-0942.

• Pam Maziarz: (860) 908-0290.

Tickets also will be available at the door.