“SHE WAS ALWAYS SMILING” — HEARTBREAKING PHOTOS OF MAYA GEBALA SPARK $500,000 SURGE IN DONATIONS AS SHE FIGHTS FOR HER LIFE 4 The image is almost too painful to look at — a bright, carefree 12-year-old grin beside a hospital bed where the same little girl now lies wrapped in bandages. As Maya Gebala continues her critical fight in a Vancouver hospital following the Tumbler Ridge school shooting, that stark contrast has shaken thousands across the country. Friends and strangers alike have flooded social media with prayers and messages of strength, sharing side-by-side photos of Maya before and after the tragedy. The emotional wave quickly turned into action: a GoFundMe campaign launched to support her treatment has now surpassed $500,000, with donations pouring in by the minute. “She deserves every chance to heal,” one supporter wrote as the total ticked upward in real time. Outside the hospital, candles flicker and stuffed animals pile higher each night, while her family holds onto hope that the same smile lighting up those photos will one day return. And as the fundraising number climbs, it’s clear the world is refusing to let Maya face this battle alone
In the digital age, a single image can define the emotional landscape of a tragedy. For the grieving community of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, and millions of onlookers across the globe, that image is the juxtaposition of Maya Gebala.
On the left of the viral social media post is a pre-tragedy photograph of a vibrant, determined 12-year-old girl, her eyes sparkling behind the cage of a hockey helmet, a proud smile on her face. On the right is the harrowing reality of 2026: the same girl lying motionless in a bed at B.C. Children’s Hospital, her face bruised, bandaged, and obscured by the tubes of a life-support system
Maya is one of the survivors of the horrific mass shooting that unfolded at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School on Tuesday, February 10. The attack, which claimed eight lives—including students, an educator, and the shooter’s own family members—has left Canada reeling. But amidst the darkness, Maya’s fight for survival has become a beacon of hope, fueled by a GoFundMe campaign that has recently surpassed the monumental $500,000 mark.
Tuesday began as a typical, exciting day for Maya, a Grade 7 student. She had been looking forward to a science project involving catapults and a lunchtime visit to her mother’s tattoo and clothing shop. She never arrived.
As the school went into lockdown, her mother, Cia Edmonds, waited in a nearby parking lot with other terrified parents. The moment of realization came via a text message from another student’s father: “Maya’s been dragged out, and I believe she’s been shot.”
Maya had been airlifted to Vancouver in critical condition, suffering from at least three gunshot wounds to her head and neck. For the first 48 hours, the prognosis was grim. Surgeons warned her parents, Edmonds and David Gebala, that there might be nothing left to do but sit with her in her final moments.
A Breakthrough in Vancouver: “She’s Way Too Stubborn”
Against all medical odds, Maya began to show signs of life on Thursday. For her parents, every tiny movement is a victory.
“She moved her left hand and leg. She coughed,” David Gebala shared during an emotional interview outside the hospital. “She’s a hockey player; she taught herself to walk on stilts. She’s way too stubborn to let this win.”
Doctors have since reduced her sedation, moving her to painkillers only, to monitor her brain activity. While she remains in a precarious state, these “incredible improvements” have provided the first sliver of hope for a town that has been fundamentally broken by violence.
What has moved the public as much as Maya’s survival is the radical empathy displayed by her mother. Despite her daughter’s life hanging by a thread, Cia Edmonds has publicly urged for compassion toward the mother of the shooter, Jennifer Strang, who was also a victim in the massacre.
Edmonds, who had been friends with Strang and even babysat the 18-year-old shooter, Jesse Van Rootselaar, as a child, is adamant that the conversation should not be about politics or weaponry.
“It’s about mental health. It’s about a lack of resources,” Edmonds told CBC News. She described Strang as a hardworking single mother who fought desperately to get help for her son, who had been hospitalized multiple times for mental crises. “I truly believe Jennifer did everything she could. I weep for her, too.”
$500,000 and Counting: A Global Response
The heartbreak of Maya’s story resonated far beyond the borders of British Columbia. A GoFundMe page, initially set up with a modest goal to help the family cover travel and medical expenses, has exploded into a global relief effort.
As of February 15, over $500,000 has been raised. The funds are designated for Maya’s long-term rehabilitation, neurological care, and to support her parents as they remain by her bedside, unable to work
Donors from as far as Europe, Asia, and Australia have left messages of support, often citing the “hockey helmet photo” as the reason they felt compelled to give. “Seeing that little girl in her hockey gear reminds us all of our own children’s innocence,” wrote one donor from Toronto.
The medical team at B.C. Children’s Hospital remains cautious. Gunshot wounds to the head and neck carry a high risk of long-term cognitive and physical impairment. However, the fact that Maya is breathing and reacting to stimuli is being hailed as a “miracle of Tumbler Ridge.”
For now, her parents are taking it one minute at a time. “I just want her to say ‘Mama’ one time,” Edmonds said through tears. “Just one time.”
The tragedy in Tumbler Ridge will undoubtedly spark renewed debates over school safety and mental health funding in Canada. But for the Gebala-Edmonds family, the only thing that matters is the 12-year-old girl fighting for her life behind a hospital curtain, supported by the prayers—and the extraordinary generosity—of half a million dollars’ worth of strangers.
References & Sources
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CBC News (British Columbia): Mother of critically injured Tumbler Ridge victim says she feels compassion for shooter’s mother. (Reported by Yvette Brend, Feb 13-14, 2026).
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GoFundMe Official Records: Support for Maya Gebala – Medical & Recovery Fund. (Verified data as of Feb 15, 2026).
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The Vancouver Sun: Tumbler Ridge Shooting: Casualties and Survivor Updates at B.C. Children’s Hospital.
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RCMP Official Press Release: Investigation into Jesse Van Rootselaar and the Tumbler Ridge Secondary School Incident.
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Global News Canada: The mental health crisis behind the Peace Region tragedy