Orphan loses leg after drunk driver crashes into bus stop where he was sitting – teen came to US from Guatemala and lost mother to cancer
- Gelvy Ortiz, 18, sat at the Wilshere Boulevard and 26th Street bus stop
- John Edward Alevizos, 35, jumped off the curb and crashed in Ortiz
- Ortiz and his brothers came to the US from Guatemala in search of a better life
A California orphan who came to this country with his brothers in pursuit of the American Dream lost his leg after waiting for a bus in Los Angeles and was hit by an allegedly drunk driver.
According to police, 18-year-old Gelvy Ortiz was sitting at the Wilshere Boulevard and 26th Street bus stop on June 2.
Suddenly, 35-year-old John Edward Alevizos jumped the curb and crashed into Ortiz.
Ortiz, who came to America from Guatemala with his three siblings – where he still attends high school – had his left leg amputated shortly afterwards and remains hospitalized. The doctors struggled to save his judge.
“I was waiting for the bus and the car hit me. I lost my left leg,” he said ABC7.
Gelvy Ortiz, 18, was at the Wilshere Boulevard and 26th Street bus stop on June 2, according to police
Ortiz has lived alone with his brothers since the boys’ mother died of breast cancer.
Brother David, 23, said he came first before eventually bringing his brothers over from Guatemala, where they were staying with their 80-year-old grandmother.
He takes care of his younger brother day and night and takes time off from the two jobs he already has.
Ortiz expects a struggle for the family, both financially and logistically to take care of Gelvy once he gets home.
‘We will have to rent an apartment on the ground floor. Our apartment is on the top floor. He won’t be able to climb the stairs,” he told the news station.
A GoFundMe was created by Amy Roblero to try and help the family. She described Gelvy as a good student.
“He always managed to get the best grades in school, regardless of the language and racial barriers he faced,” Roblero wrote of the campaign, which raised more than $46,000.
An avid football player, Gelvy also had plans to enlist in the U.S. Army after completing high school, according to KTLA.
Ortiz, who came to America from Guatemala with his three siblings – where he still attends high school – had his left leg amputated shortly afterwards and remains hospitalized. The doctors struggled to save his judge
John Edward Alevizos, 35, posted bail and was released shortly after being arrested in the crash. He is charged with misdemeanor DUI
The scene at the bus stop where Ortiz sat on Wilshere Boulevard and 26th Street on June 2
Ortiz, who planned to enlist in the U.S. Army after high school, uses his faith to fuel his hopeful recovery. ‘I ask God to give me the strength to get through this situation’
“He did all this while his brothers worked so they could support each other.”
The campaign’s goal is currently set at $100,000 for “medical bills and paying for their basic human needs (rent, food, bills, etc.)” and to eventually get Gelvy a prosthetic leg.
Ortiz uses his faith to fuel his hopeful recovery.
“I ask God to give me the strength to get through this situation,” he said.
Alevizos posted bail and was released shortly after being arrested for the crash. He is charged with misdemeanor DUI.