LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. () — Christian Bedolla is a fighter. The 21-year-old just beat a rare form of lymphoma and was about to resume his dream of becoming a firefighter when he was hit by an alleged drunk driver in Laguna Niguel.
Bedolla is now fighting to recover after being critically injured in the crash. He suffered a serious brain injury and numerous broken bones, his family said.
Bedolla is an Orange County Fire Authority cadet. Ever since he was a child he had one driving wish.
“Be a firefighter and save lives,” Bedolla’s girlfriend Beeta Safouri told Eyewitness News.
Bedolla’s girlfriend and his mother say he is the light of their lives. They describe him as driven and hardworking with a heart of gold.
Investigators say a 20-year-old-drunk driver ran a red light and slammed into Bedolla’s car in Laguna Niguel Tuesday night. The crash happened in the area of Cabot Road and Crown Valley Parkway.
“Christian is a first responder. He was an EMT, so he sees these things all the time, so he always looks both ways whenever he’s crossing,” Safouri said. “But this car was driving so fast that Christian missed it.”
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the with Bedolla’s mounting medical bills and long road to recovery.
“He would tell us to move on and forget about the negative, to focus on the positive and that no matter what we’re going to be OK, we just need to keep going and have a lot of faith,” Bedolla’s mother Azucena Rubio said.
“I have faith in me that he’s going to be OK because of how much he persevered throughout the ups and downs,” Safouri said.
Bedolla and his girlfriend had recently gone to Europe to celebrate him beating cancer.
The morning of the accident, he had sent in his request to return to the fire academy, ready to fulfill his dream of serving his community.
“He loves life and everything about it,” Rubio said.
Bedolla remains in critical condition.
The alleged drunk driver is still behind bars and is being held on $75,000 bail. He’s due in court next week.
Television,
