Monday should have been the first day of school for a 6-year-old North Texas girl, but she was instead at Children's Medical Center of Dallas after an all-terrain vehicle crash that killed her mother.
"It's horrible — a horrible, horrible, horrible situation. There is nothing to do except just keep going, try to be strong for them and just be there," said the girl's aunt, Lorilei Cronin.
Bella Cardenas, 6, and her mother, Carissa Taylor, were riding on an ATV on Farm-to-Market Road 740 in Forney on Aug. 7 when they collided with a car. We are told the driver did not see them, and it was a tragic accident.
Taylor didn't survive, and Bella has a very serious leg injury that has required five surgeries so far, with a sixth operation upcoming.
"No one can ever take her mother's place. She was the love of my brother's life. My brother loved her so much, and Bella loved her so much. She was a good, good, good mom. A great mom," said Cronin.
The family has been with Bella around the clock in the hospital, and they have found comfort in so many people asking how they can help. Bella's father is not working right now in order to be with her, so people have been donating to a GoFundMe page.
"I just want people to know there is a lot of good in the world, and it's been awesome for us to see," Cronin said.
