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Mother Of Teen Grateful Her Daughter Did Not Die Alone

By Melissa Garcia

DENVER (CBS4) – The mother of a teenager who died after being hit by two cars last week is reaching out to thank the strangers who stopped to help.

Dominique Amos, 18, was killed while crossing Leetsdale just west of Quebec on Thursday evening.

Amos' mother, Virginia Peter, feels thankful that her daughter died in the company of a few people who cared.

She says Amos was crossing Leetsdale heading home on her lunch break from work down the block when she was hit by oncoming traffic.

Leetsdale Mom 3
(credit: CBS4)

"I just can't believe she's gone," the grieving mother told CBS4's Melissa Garcia. "She was a good girl, and she had a very big heart… I want to thank everybody who stopped to help my daughter… I was afraid that she had died alone."

Peter was unaware at the time that her daughter lie dying on the pavement just feet away from where the family lives.

Leetsdale Mom 1
(credit: CBS4)

"I was home at the time," Peter said. "I was so close and so far away at the same time… I couldn't be there to comfort her."

A few witnesses who stopped to help the severely injured teen, however, were there to do what Amos' mother could not.

"The first thing I saw was her eyes. Somebody had to help her. She's a human being," said Averia Balderes, who stopped at the scene to help the victim while others just drove off or stood back and stared from a distance.

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Averia Balderes (credit: CBS)

Her efforts to revive the victim with CPR were unsuccessful. "I'm sorry I couldn't save her," Balderes said tearfully.

Balderes did what she could to comfort the girl in her final moments.

"Me and another lady prayed over her. And we held her," Balderes said.

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(credit: CBS)

Denver police said one of the drivers who struck Amos stopped at the scene and the other stopped a short distance away.

The victim's 4-year-old brother is still too young to understand that his big sister is not coming back.

Despite the lifelong heartache ahead, Peter is forever grateful for those who cared enough to help a stranger.

"To know that there (are) people in this world that were willing to stop and try to help her and not leave her alone… I can't say thank you enough," Peter said.

A family member has set up an online fundraiser to help cover the cost of Amos' funeral, medical, and travel expenses:

https://www.gofundme.com/dominique-amos?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=email&utm_content=cta_button&utm_campaign=upd_n

Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.

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