PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The family of a Vancouver woman who was killed after a car crashed into her home Thursday night, are remembering the caregiver, wife and sister for having “the biggest heart.”
The victim’s sister told KOIN 6 News that Danielle Abrahams, a selfless caregiver by trade, had so much life to look forward to before a driver got behind the wheel and shattered their world.
As the family deals with the loss of their home and the unimaginable loss of Abrahams, her sister says more than anything her family wants justice.
“She had the biggest heart. She’d give you the shirt off her back. I haven’t found one single person who’s had anything bad to say about her,” Abrahams’ sister, Justine Baker, said.
Baker explained that until her sister’s untimely death, Abrahams was an avid fisherman and gardener and a loving wife, sister and friend. She said Abrahams also planned to do the Hood to Coast race next weekend and was trying for a baby with her husband William.
Officials responded to the crash into the home on Unander Avenue around 6:40 p.m. Thursday. The crash killed Abrahams and her dog Radimir and displaced her husband and brother.
Investigators say the driver was traveling at a high rate of speed, hit a median curb, crashed through a fence and then into the house.
Baker added, “they did try to save her, but they couldn’t lift the car off her and she just kept saying, ‘I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to help cover legal fees, funeral costs and support the two displaced in the crash.
Vancouver police said the person behind the wheel is still hospitalized and expected to survive, but with speed and impairment factors in the deadly crash, they say once released, the driver faces DUI and vehicular homicide charges.
“She didn’t pass away instantly and she suffered immensely. So, we don’t want any kind of deal for this woman,” Baker said. “She made a choice to drink and drive and she doesn’t deserve any grace in this.”
Abrahams’ coworkers told KOIN 6 News that she adored her job caring for clients with disabilities at Reside Residential Care – where she touched the lives of so many colleagues who gathered on Sunday to remember the caregiver, fishing partner and softball teammate taken too soon.
“It just seemed unreal to think that somebody who I saw just a few hours ago, and had talked to everyday, was all of a sudden gone. Just taken away,” said Nick Doheny, who worked with Abrahams.
In the 10 years working with her at Reside Residential Care, Rich Nakanishi says he went from being Abrahams’ boss to close friend and even officiated her wedding.
“We’re trying to wrap our heads around how something so tragic could happen to someone so good,” Nakanishi said.
One by one, coworkers shared their favorite memories of Abrahams who they say held the group together with her positive attitude, bright smile and her love of bonding both in and outside the office.
“We love her and we’re going to miss her tremendously,” said Abrahams’ coworker Wendy Pyshny.
Susan Johnson, who also worked with Abrahams, added, “it’s really messed up that a person decided to go behind the wheel of a car when they’re drunk and ruin everybody’s life; not just the person that they killed, but the people that they loved, that they cared for. It’s not fair.”
