LUBBOCK, Texas — The Texas Department of Public Safety said 35-year-old Norma Borjas was hit and killed by a car on Highway 62 near Idalou on Sunday morning. Her family is now pleading for answers after the driver left Borjas for dead.
Borjas’s family says she was escaping an abusive relationship and finally found the courage to pack her bags and leave. They tell EverythingLubbock.com that she was crossing Highway 62 when she was hit by a car that drove away.
“I’m proud that my sister finally came to her true strength. It breaks my heart that it wasn’t soon enough because she was always strong enough,” said Elizabeth Russwurd, younger sister to Norma.
Russwurd said they noticed several red flags when she would have injuries on her face that Borjas would brush off as being work related. “You can only push someone so far and ask so many questions until it became apparent what was truly happening, and we offered assistance,” said Russwurd.
Her family now believes she gained the strength to leave the abusive relationship that morning.
“I think she had reached her breaking point and she finally felt that she was strong enough to leave on her own. She was trying to escape at that time, she was leaving very early in the morning packed with two duffel bags when she was struck by that vehicle,” said Russwurd.
The driver of that car left Borjas on the road.
“We as humans of this world, people of this world are responsible for our actions and whether it was an accident, purposely, whatever, you could have stopped and rendered aid. We would not have held you accountable to those things if you had just stopped and helped our sister. You denied her access to medical care, our ability to say bye to her and to make her last wishes known. You, the driver, took all those options away from us,” said Russwurd.
Borjas leaves behind a 7-year-old son, who they said will now never get to know his mother’s free and kind spirit.
“She made you truly believe the world was filled with magic and mermaids and fairies and you just wanted to believe in this fantasy world that you saw. You wanted to see the world through her eyes,” said Russwurd.
Her family is now looking for closure and hopes to know that her sister did not die in vain.
They’re asking for anyone with any information to report it to 806-740-8770.
“I want her to know that she was one of the best big sisters ever and that she made me feel like a beautiful person inside and out and I just want to thank her for making me believe in the magic in the world and the fairies and the mermaids, because she truly made my childhood the best,” said Russwud.
The family has a Gofundme to help with funeral expenses. To help Borjas’s 7-year-old son, you can click here to donate.
For resources regarding domestic abuse situations, you can visit the Women’s Protective Services website here.
