A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family of 9-year-old Victoria Reitmeier-Desjardins, who was killed in a collision with a fleering robber on Calgary's Macleod Trail on Boxing Day.
Her mother Amanda and sister Madison were also in the car at the time, and remain in hospital with "numerous" injuries.
The fundraiser was set up on December 27 by Zara Wishloff, who explained that the goal was to "get Trevor Desjardin's family support to fund a funeral for Victoria as well as help with the long road of recovery that lays ahead for these ladies."
"To legitimize," she added, "I am the President of APD, Amanda's Employer. She is a 10+ year employee and manages our Calgary location. Staff had wanted a GOFUNDME page set up , as we all know her and her family well."
She emphasized that, "ALL FUNDS ARE GOING DIRECTLY TO THE FAMILY to alleviate financial burden on funeral decisions and to help with their journey of recovery that they will be facing."
At the time of writing, over 400 people had donated and more than $37,000 had been raised, with a goal of $200,000.
According to the Calgary Police Service, the initial incident took place shortly before 9:30 a.m. at a Pharmasave on 15 Millrise Blvd. SW.
"It is believed the suspect assaulted a pharmacist and fled the scene in a stolen vehicle," the CPS wrote in a press release. "After locating the vehicle, officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop, but the driver refused to stop and continued driving at high rates of speed."
The ensuing collision took place approximately 18 minutes later after the suspect "ran through a red light at the intersection of Macleod Trail and Southland Drive SE, striking multiple vehicles."
"As a result of the collision, four people were taken to hospital in critical, life-threatening condition," the CPS explained. "The driver was arrested at the scene and remains in custody."
The CPS announced hours later that Reitmeier-Desjardins had succumbed to her injuries.
