DONATIONS TO FUND 'OVERWHELMING'.

Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY 

Sometimes it takes a tragedy to bring out the best in people, and that's never been more true than the story of little 6-year-old Jamie Lopez.

I wrote about Jamie last week, and how the horrendous car crash that killed her mother and older sister, and almost killed her, so affected the LAPD Devonshire Division officers who responded to the scene that they started a college trust fund for her.

In less than a week, you readers have helped out by donating more than $4,000 to the trust fund, and on Thursday another check was received for $1,000 from an anonymous donor.

``The response has been overwhelming, and my partner and I want to thank all the people who have opened their hearts to Jamie,'' said Officer Ernie Jimenez, who with Officer Richard Sauer had the unenviable job of having to notify next of kin after the Jan. 20 crash.

The Lopez car was hit broadside at Tampa Avenue and Parthenia Street in Northridge by a pickup truck that had reached speeds of nearly 90 mph after its driver had a seizure and passed out with his foot on the gas pedal, police say.

He was not arrested, and the case was forwarded to the City Attorney's Office for further review.

The Jaws of Life device was needed to pry Jamie out of the crushed car, and her injuries looked so bad as she was rushed to Northridge Hospital Medical Center that both veteran officers were sure she would not survive.

So, when they knocked on the door of the Lopez grandparents to tell them their daughter, Judith, and 8-year-old granddaughter, Beatric, were dead, they thought Jamie would soon follow.

All he could see, Officer Jimenez said, were the faces of his own two kids who are about the same age as the Lopez sisters.

But Jamie proved to be a tough kid. She didn't die, she lived. And over the weekend she was released from the hospital to go home.

On Thursday, she and her dad and grandparents came to the Devonshire Division to say thank you to the officers who helped save her life and started this college trust fund.

Jamie, a shy girl, hugged and thanked the officers for visiting her in the hospital every day while she recovered.

``One of our other officers also surprised her by giving her a new bicycle and helmet,'' said Capt. Jerry Szymanski. ``His daughter had read the column about Jamie, and told her dad to use her allowances to buy the bike.

``This isn't a one-time thing,'' Szymanski said. ``We all have the feeling Jamie's going to be the adopted child of this station for a long time. She's touched us all.''

One other message the police wanted to get out was that this crash has redoubled the department's efforts to crack down on speeders in the Valley, so don't be surprised if you see officers writing more speeding tickets.

If you want to donate to the college fund, send a check to the Jamie Lopez Trust Fund, Bank of Granada Hills, 10820 Zelzah Ave., Granada Hills, CA 91344.

The money won't take away the scars, physically and emotionally, this little girl will carry with her the rest of her life, but it will give her a shot at a brighter future.

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Photo:

Jamie Lopez, 6, receives a visit from a police officer after the Jan. 20 car crash that killed her mother and 8-year-old sister. Over the weekend she was released from the hospital to go home. More than $4,000 has been raised in a college fund for her.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer