City rallies for grandmother pushed in front of CTrain
Online fundraiser launched to help with rehab costs
The wrong place at the wrong time.
That’s where 64-year-old Rozalia Meichl, a mother of three and grandmother of eight, found herself Thursday afternoon when she was pushed into the path of an oncoming CTrain by a stranger — something her son, Allan Hein, said will change her life.
“She was walking before Thursday, and she’ll never walk again — I’ve been told she wasn’t supposed to come off the operating table with a pulse,” he said.
“She has no idea what happened to her. She’s using a whiteboard to write messages to us and using thumbs up and thumbs down.”
Calgary police called the act random and that, thankfully, the CTrain was able to stop before it reached Meichl.
Hein was at the gym when he got a frantic phone call from his sister.
“I was at the gym ready to stretch and wind things down when my sister called me crying and said ‘Mom’s alive, but we have to go to the hospital,’ ” said Hein.
“The doctors sat my sister and I down and explained what happened from an injury standpoint, what they needed to do and what our options were.”
Meichl, who was on permanent disability and unable to work, has no medical or disability insurance. A GoFundMe campaign raised more than $5,000 in its first day.
“She has nothing — not even two pennies to rub together — and if she did, she would’ve given them to a charity,” said Hein.
“She’s just a fighter and she’s never wanted sympathy — she’s a strong, strong woman.
“Anyone who has met my mom would tell you she’s stubborn. I can already see three years from now and she’s sitting in a wheelchair saying, ‘it’s going to take a lot more than a drug addict to get rid of me.’ ”
Funds raised through the campaign are to be directed toward Meichl’s rehabilitation, medical bills and long-term care.
Calling her a selfless woman, Hein said his mother was a regular volunteer at the Kerby Centre and at the seniors home where she lived.
“She’s so giving,” he said. “Leading up to this, she was rarely mobile, but she recently did the butterfly walk for cancer and raised money. Here’s a lady who’s got nothing, a single mom her whole life and raised my sister and I, and she still continues to give over herself — she’s just an amazing woman.”
A recovery for Meichl is going to be a long process that will begin with a minimum four-month stint in the intensive-care unit, Hein said.
“But, again, that could be four days — she might not even pull through this,” he said.
Stephanie Favel, 35, faces charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault and breach of probation in relation to the incident. According to investigators, the attack was random and unprovoked.
Those looking to donate to the campaign can search Support Rose’s Road to Recovery at gofundme.com.