PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Pierre Hannecart says October 30 was the worst day of his life.
That was the day his wife, Maria Camela Lazo Hannecart-known as Ella, was killed by a falling tree.
She was driving to work at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center when a large tree fell onto her car as she traveled along School House Lane in East Falls. She was killed instantly.
READ MORE | Woman killed after tree falls on moving car in Philadelphia’s East Falls section
A police officer delivered the tragic news to Hannecart later that day.
“He goes, ‘Well, I have something to tell you that’s going to harm you,'” recalled Hannecart. “Then he told me this tragedy, this awful story about the tree that fell on the car… I couldn’t believe it.”
Ella was a nurse practitioner who had dedicated her life to helping others. She worked with Doctors Without Borders, volunteering in Haiti, Senegal, and the Congo, where she cared for patients during an Ebola outbreak. It was in the Congo where she met Pierre.
“She grabbed my hand on the back and she held it ever since — until last Wednesday,” he said.
The couple had three children, ages 3, 7, and 9. Just hours after learning of Ella’s death, Pierre had to tell them.
“I put them next to each other. I told them, ‘What I’m going to tell you is going to change your life forever,” he said. “They all cried at the same time, and we all hugged each other.”
A funeral will be held for Ella on Sunday. A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help support the children.
Pierre says Ella’s legacy will live on through her values.
“Say the truth. Be compassionate and honest,” he said. “This is what I would say because this is who she was, and this is how she has to be remembered.”
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