She hadn’t gotten her plaques to mark her college graduation from the emergency medical technician academy. The South Carolina academy she attended honored her with plaques on Tuesday.

“Although I couldn’t save her, she enjoyed saving lives,” stated Robin Massia, Lanie’s mom. “She had a heart bigger than her body.”

At Ogdensburg Free Academy, Ms. Massia ran track, was a cheerleader, and played in the marching band. She was regularly on the honor roll and seldom finished a course without earning an A. After graduation, she searched for careers, but nothing seemed to fit. She attempted cosmetology, college, and waitressing. None were right for her.

After that, she became a mother to Zayne and Kambri. She was a stay-at-home mother and adored her children, her mother stated.

“Her child, Zayne, is momma’s child,” her mother said. “Kambri is a little younger, but Zayne was her heart and she is his heart.”

Ms. Massia hadmoved to Florida, then Kansas, back to Florida, and most recently to South Carolina. That’s where she found the Richland Academy. She was one of the first EMT trainees to graduate the academy.

It stunned her family members that she was becoming an emergency medical technician. Ms. Massia lost her oldest brother in a fire in Plattsburgh, her father shortly after that and her middle brother just in 2014. Her mother worried about just how she would certainly manage the task, yet likewise understood just how she dealt with others. Her family members defined her as the kind of individual that, regardless of just how difficult she was hurting emotionally, was still positive and sparkling with every person she came across. So, the transition into a rescue career was smooth after all, and she thrived.

“She finally found what made her satisfied,” her mother stated. “She would call me about it all the time as well as say ‘Mama I lost someone today,’ or ‘Mom I saved a life.’”

Ms. Massia wished people were proud of her, the family members said.

“She would certainly call me constantly as well as ask if I was proud of her,” said Frankki Massia, Lanie’s sister. “We were all proud of her. You can tell them she loved it.”

On April 7, Ms. Massia was about 3 mins from home when she crashed. It has been a whirlwind for the family members to obtain information about what took place, they stated. Frankki took a trip from Ogdensburg to South Carolina to see her sister as well as obtain any information she could. Frankki went to the crash site saw the tire marks as well as the sign her sister hit. After that, she spoke to 2 guys that were bystanders. They stayed with Ms. Massia till the very first responders arrived on the scene the day of the accident.

From what she as well as their family members could find, it appears Ms. Massia was driving down a road she hardly ever used. There were a few things found on the flooring of her car, so they believe she could have been grabbing something when a sharp contour curved the roadway. She went off the roadway as well as crashed into a ditch. Frankki said the airbags did not go off and her head struck the windscreen. She was then knocked unconscious and left without oxygen for about 20 mins before the two guys discovered her. Ms. Massia continued to be on a ventilator in the health center for days.

Frankki flew to South Carolina on Monday, the day before her sister died. She was able to stay all night in the hospital with Ms. Massia, holding her hand most of the moment.

On Tuesday, the ventilator was turned off, and Ms. Massia’s body couldn’t survive by itself.

“They gave us as long as we needed,” Frankki said of the hospital team, ”up until her dying breath.”

Frankki said she takes comfort in knowing her sister didn’t experience it.

Ms. Massia’s funeral is set for Tuesday at Frary Funeral Chapel in Ogdensburg. That’s where most of her family are, as well as Frankki is thrilled and a little anxious regarding the services considering that an overwhelming amount of people may turn up.

Between a GoFundMe and an account set up by the Neighborhood Financial Institution in Ogdensburg, about $11,000 has been raised for the family as well as her children. It’s made her family members feel thankful, Frankki stated, and proud that Ms. Massia will certainly be put to rest in the northern nation.

“It was an eye-opener for us,” Frankki said. “We knew just how remarkable she was because she’s our sister but to see the number of people she affected as well as how many people who loved her has blown our family away.”