Restaurant holds fundraiser for mother of Swan Boat Club crash victims
BELLEVILLE, Mich. (FOX 2) - While tragic details of a fatal crash were coming to light inside a Monroe County courthouse on Tuesday, a restaurant in Woodhaven was fundraising to help the mother who lost her two children.
Zayn Phillips, 4, and his sister Alanah Phillips, 8, were killed after a woman accused of being drunk crashed through Swan Boat Club in Berlin Township as it hosted a child’s birthday party on Saturday.
Thirteen others were injured, including the mother and older brother of the two children killed.
On Tuesday, Marshella Chidester, 66, was charged with two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of operating while intoxicated causing death, and four counts of operating while intoxicated, causing serious injury.
The mother of Zayn and Alanah, Mariah Dodds, had only been working at Adelitas, a Mexican restaurant in Woodhaven, for three weeks before she became one of the victims of the crash. However, in that short time, she made a strong connection with the owner.
So when the restaurant's staff learned about what happened on Saturday, they decided to help.
"She just seems like she is a person of her word, so when I didn’t hear from her over the weekend it seemed very strange," said Natalia Rodriguez, the owner of Adelitas. "A percentage of everything that we're getting today is going directly towards her, and we also have this donation box that's going to go directly to her."
The fundraiser was spread by word of mouth and social media, with plans to host another one on Thursday.
"I was just going to come in and give them some money and go home, but thought I might as well get something to eat," said Leeann Nagy, Flat Rock resident. "Hopefully people can share a lot with others, because they need it."
The restaurant was packed the entire day and had to close down at 3 p.m. because they ran out of food. They reopened around dinnertime.
Dodds and her oldest son, Jayden, are still at an area hospital, with a long road to recovery ahead. The mother suffered broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and severe bruising due to the crash. She spent days on a ventilator before being taken off recently, her sister said in court.
Dodds is now suing the suspected driver, Chidester, and the bar she was at before the deadly incident.
Security video showed Chidester speeding through the parking lot before slamming into the boat club building over the weekend.
During her arraignment on Tuesday, the prosecution argued that Chidester had a "very severe substance abuse issue," while her attorney claimed that she suffered from a medical condition that caused her legs to freeze up while she was driving.
According to witnesses, there were about 70 individuals at the party. Three others were also hospitalized with serious injuries due to the crash, while five others suffered minor injuries.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help bury Alanah and Zayn. Money raised will also help pay for their mother and brother's medical care.
Another GoFundMe account was created for a young woman named Lia on Monday, one of the victims who suffered serious injuries. She was attending her 3-year-old cousin's birthday.
