ER worker killed in wreck overcame many challenges, "always came out on top," says family
| Monday, Jun 08 2009 05:06 PM
Last Updated Monday, Jun 08 2009 05:10 PM
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How can I help?
The family has set up a bank account to help with funeral expenses. Anyone wishing to donate may do so at any branch of Kern Schools Federal Credit Union in the name of Carey Ann Curtis Memorial Fund or by mailing a check to KSFCU, PO Box 9506, Bakersfield, Ca., 93389-9506
How often does this happen?
Kern County has averaged about 47 alcohol-involved fatal collisions a year between 2003 and 2007, the California Highway Patrol reported.
How are her friends and family coping?
Below are some comments from Carey's MySpace page:
HEY GIRLIE... I LOVE YOU. Its CRAZY how short life is. I just talked to you friday night about how much our lives changed since we were younger, and just one short day later I find out that life has changed dramatically overnight. I was so proud of you for getting ready to go back to respiratory school. Do me a favor girl... keep in touch k... my mom's up there... she'll look out for you... I'm gonna miss you Carey...
We have grown up together more like sisters. You have always been there for me and you have helped me through so much. I love you and I just don't know how to face the fact that you are gone.
To my BFF where do I begin. First off I LOVE YOU!! You mean more to me than I ever had a chance to tell you. But I know you are in a better place. God must of needed an ANGEL and he picked a good one. YOU ARE LOVED!!
Carey Curtis never let life knock her down.
The 26-year-old nursing assistant at Kern Medical had a baby at 15, a brain-damaged child at 18 and trouble finishing school, but the "determined" young woman fought through all that to get on track to help others in a medical field.
Then on Sunday, an alleged drunken driver slammed into Curtis' car while she was heading home from a double shift at work. She died at the scene of the crash.
Her big sister, Candace Altman, 28, said Carey was "head strong" and "very determined."
"She was beautiful inside and out," Altman said. "I was always so proud of her that no matter what hardship she had in life -- having a child early, taking care of a handicapped child or having trouble in school -- she was always able to come out on top."
The young Shafter mother, described by her family as a workaholic, was taking classes at San Joaquin College to become a respiratory therapist.
She was inspired by nurses at UCLA Medical Center who took care of her 8-year-old son, Keanu, who was born with part of his brain not functioning properly.
The boy had seizures, trouble breathing and nearly died a few times, said Carey's aunt, Michelle Nightingale. To give him a chance, half of his brain was removed, she said.
Curtis "watched the nurses at UCLA so she could lean how to care for her son," her aunt said.
Curtis went back to Bakersfield Adult School to get her GED degree, got training as a nursing assistant and pursued a respiratory therapist career, Nightingale said.
She was on her way to a friend's house Sunday morning where she planned to sleep for a few hours. She had to be back at work eight hours later.
But she was struck broadside at 4 a.m. at Wilson and Wible roads. The impact shoved Curtis' car into the side of a market, killing her.
The suspect, Tina Pina, 37, was booked into jail on felony vehicular manslaughter while driving drunk with gross negligence.
Family and friends of Curtis gathered Monday at the Shafter home where she cared for her son and 11-year-old daughter, Kylie.
Her mother, Suzanne Roberts, said she and her husband, Jimmy, would take care of their daughter's children, who had been living with them with their mother.
Carey's husband and the father of the children, Ronald Curtis, had been separated from Carey, but he has maintained a relationship with the family and was grieving with them Monday.
They shared memories, including how she loved to sing, often taking a karaoke microphone and belting out Mariah Carey and (British pop star) Adele tunes.
She had fun at Pismo Beach with her children. As many as 30 family members would get together once a year at Pismo Coast Village trailer park.
"They would dance to the music and sing together," Nightingale said.
She had a great time dressing up on Halloween with her children, the last couple times going as Bo Peep and, fittingly, a nurse, her mother recalled.
As a young girl she attended Awana, a youth club about Bible studies and religious activities.
Before and even after working at Kern Medical Center, Curtis enjoyed working a carhop at the Sonic Drive-in on Olive Drive where she took orders on rollerblades to cars and pickups.
Her quote on her MySpace page is "Live, Love, Laugh, Dream, and be happy!!!! No one can take that from you."
