33-year-old Surrey resident Amy Wang loved spending time with children. A doting aunt to her young brother’s two kids, Wang worked as a nanny and was training to be an early childhood educator. She was killed by a suspected drunk driver going the wrong way on Highway 1 through Burnaby on Sept. 23. In a tearful interview, her father Daniel Wang recounted how he learned of his daughter’s death when he called his wife at home that morning. “(She said) RCMP come to our house, and I said, ‘What? Don’t say it. Don’t talk to me! What happened?’ She said your daughter has passed away,” said Daniel. Amy’s brother William Wang, who lives in Saskatchewan, got a phone call from his mother while pulling into his driveway with his two young sons. “I stayed in the garage while the kids played on their bikes and scooters, and I just kind of sat on the floor and processed the whole thing,” said William. “From there, my wife came home, and I kind of broke down to her.” A friend of Amy’s was also killed in the collision, and their Uber driver was seriously injured. In an email, the B.C. Highway Patrol said, “Police are actively investigating the possibility that impairment by alcohol was a major contributing factor in this collision.” “If he was impaired, he would have had to be very impaired or intoxicated to pass through different signs that say do not enter, and go on to the wrong side of the highway,” said William. “When you see multiple vehicles going the same direction as you, any sober person would realize that they were going down the wrong way very quickly, and maybe pull over at least instead of continuing barreling down the highway,” he added. “He took my daughter, right? Not even 34 years old,” said Daniel. But Amy’s father believes his daughter would forgive the man behind the wheel of the pickup truck, who is subject to a 90-day driving prohibition while the case is under investigation. “I pray for peace for all the families. Not just three families broken; it’s four families, including the truck driver. He (will) face more pain later,” said Daniel. Shattered by grief, he is leaning on his Christian faith. “My daughter has come to my dreams and said, ‘Don’t be sad. I rest again. I be with Jesus Christ,’” Daniel said. Amy’s brother has lost his only sibling, and his kids have lost their beloved aunt. “The toughest part is my oldest is five, and so he knows who auntie Amy is, but my youngest is two and a half, and he-I don’t think he’s going to have any recollection,” said William. “We’re going to tell them lots about auntie Amy, and remind them how much she loved them.” The Wang family is grateful for the outpouring of support from friends and strangers who’ve donated to a GoFundMe for funeral expenses. Amy is being put to rest at a service at her church on Saturday. “I want her to be remembered as a loving sister, a loving daughter, a loving auntie, a generous person to all,” said William. “Someone who loved Jesus. Someone who was just so loved by everyone else around her.”
