Sisters woman killed in crash on icy Hwy. 20 remembered as ‘amazing mother … who made everyone laugh’

(Update: Update on funds raised for family)

Fundraising effort for family strikes chord, quickly moves toward goal

SISTERS, Ore. (KTVZ) – A friend and coworker of a Sisters woman killed in a crash two days before Christmas on icy Highway 20 east of Sisters is raising funds to help the tragedy-stricken family, which includes five young children, and is quickly finding support in that effort.

Cenobia Gonzalez, who started a GoFundMe page for the family, said Maria Aviles Tapia, 38, leaves behind five children, ages 3 to 19, and that her husband, who was driving, is unable to return to work due to his injuries.

Oregon State Police said troopers and other first responders were dispatched to the single-vehicle crash shortly before 4 p.m. Friday near milepost 3.

A preliminary investigation found that the driver, Zairo Osegueda Palacios, 39, of Sisters, was heading west toward Sisters at the wheel of a Suzuki XL 7 and lost control on icy road conditions.

The SUV crossed the eastbound lane and struck a tree in the area of Harrington Loop Road and the Sisters Rodeo grounds. Palacios was taken to St. Charles Bend with what troopers said were minor injuries.

“Maria was an amazing mother who worked two jobs to help take care of her family,” Gonzalez said on a GoFundMe page she set up to help the family deal with its “devastating loss.”

Gonzalez said Tapia worked cleaning houses and was a server at Rancho Viejo, a Mexican restaurant in downtown Sisters, to support her family. She said Tapia was also taking care of her homebound mother.

“She was dearly loved in her community and made everyone around her laugh,” her friend said.

By Christmas night, the fundraising page had received about 150 donations, raising more than $16,000 toward a $25,000 goal. Less than a day later, the goal had been doubled, to $50,000, as had the number of donations, and the amount raised topped $33,000 for medical and funeral costs and family living expenses.

The highway was closed for about three hours for the crash investigation. ODOT said Highway 20 was closed from the junction with Oregon Highway 126 in Sisters to the intersection with Cloverdale Road. A detour route was established using Cloverdale Road to Highway 126 and Highway 20.

Light freezing rain was reported in the area.

OSP was assisted by the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office, the Cloverdale and Sisters-Camp Sherman fire departments and ODOT.