Mom of Tumbler Ridge mass shooting survivor Maya Gebala mourning dog
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The French bulldog belonging to the mother of 12-year-old Tumbler Ridge mass shooting survivor Maya Gebala has died after being hit by a car.
The pooch was killed on Friday, according to mom Cia Edmonds, who wrote about the tragedy on her Facebook page the next day.
“I’m sorry I didn’t fix that fence my boy,” Edmonds wrote in her tribute . “He was unfortunately too good at escaping. A small town boy, didn’t know a city. I brought him to the hospital to see Maya, almost everyday.”
Edmonds wrote that Maya, who has been recovering in hospital in Vancouver, was home at the time.
Driver stopped after dog struck
“(Friday) though, I brought Maya home to us. We were throwing a ball for him in the backyard, then in a second, he was gone … Within minutes, he was hit by a car… Thank you to the lady that stopped. It isn’t your fault, thank you for showing compassion.”
Edmonds wrote the canine eventually died from his injuries.
“He was just a little guy, and his injuries were bigger. I sat with him last night, and rubbed his ears, while he fell asleep for good…. Bye little man. We’ll miss you. I hope your running free now, with nothing to hold you back. Sorry to my littles, furry or not, I just don’t know how to do better. I’ll keep trying …”
Along with Maya’s father, David Gebala, Edmonds has been providing updates on her daughter’s condition since she was shot in the face and neck on Feb. 10 during a mass shooting in the remote B.C. community of Tumbler Ridge.
The gunman was later identified as Jesse Van Rootselaar, 18, a transgender woman who shot herself.
A total of six people were killed at the school and Van Rootselaar’s home and two others were wounded in the attack.
Latest updates on Maya’s condition
Last month, Gebala wrote the teenager’s condition had improved enough that she left the hospital for an outing to the nearby botanical garden at Bloedel Conservatory in Queen Elizabeth Park.
At the same time, Edmonds, a mother of two, wrote the 12-year-old had started communicating with the use of a tablet.
“It just clicked. Her responses, her reactions. I made her a ‘yes/no’ button set she’s learned to use. I found an app on her iPad for non verbal communications. She’s learned to be more deliberate with that as well.”
A GoFundMe was started for the family, who have been living in airBnBs in Vancouver, and it’s so far raised more than $585,000.