A 16-year-old girl who died in a sleigh accident in upstate New York died protecting her 3-year-old cousin in the tragic accident, according to reports.
Renee Hill, a sophomore at Niagara Wheatfield High School, and her cousin were going down a hill in a sleigh tube at Clyde L. Burmaster Park in Lewiston when they hit a tree around 10 am on Saturday, said the authorities.
They were transported by ambulance to Oishei Children’s Hospital, where Renee was pronounced dead, WIVB reported. The boy was treated and released.
Renee’s heartbroken mother, Alexis Kraft, described how the tragedy unfolded – and how her daughter’s “first instinct” was to save her cousin.
“She had come down the hill. She was with my 3 year old nephew with her. She saw the tree coming. His first instinct was to put his foot on the ground and turn the sled over so my nephew wouldn’t get hurt. She hit the tree. His heart stopped on the way to the hospital, ”Kraft told WKBW.
“Everyone is calling her a hero. But that was my baby, ”she added. “She was our whole world.”
Renee, described as a “mommy bear”, was the eldest of four children.
“She was a mama bear for sure. She could put them on the phone very quickly, but she was loving and everyone loved her, ”said her mother.
“Everyone loved her,” the girl’s father, Richard Hill, told WKBW.
Renee’s lacrosse coach, Joe Kiszka, said the teenager was a strong and silent leader who was feared on the pitch, but was an absolute love outside him.
“All the parents and all the other girls on the team would call her a beast because, once she went on the pitch, she would just last,” added her mother.
Renee’s parents thanked the community for their support after the loss of their daughter.
“Don’t take a minute for granted with your babies. Tell them that you love them. Every minute. Every chance you have, ”said Kraft.
A GoFundMe fundraiser has so far raised more than $ 20,000 of his $ 25,000 goal to help the family.