Vicki Down's car was stolen from the Mayfair Manor parking garage. (Photo Courtesy Ross Lavigne)

By Gates Guarin

‘It’s a lifeline’: car theft victim required vehicle for cancer treatments

Jul 25, 2022 | 5:25 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Shock and disbelief.

Those are the emotions Vicki Down and her daughter Chanell Shannon felt after learning someone had stolen Down’s vehicle literally from right under her.

Down lives just above the parking garage of Mayfair Manor, located at Fourth Street and Fifth Avenue SE, where her car was parked. Down suffers from stage four cancer, and only uses the vehicle, a 2009 black Dodge Caliber, primarily to commute to and from Calgary for treatment. Now Down says she is unsure how she will continue to make the long drive.

“Well, I’m stuck now. Like, I don’t go long trips except to Calgary, and I have to do that every 28 days, and then every other month I have to go up twice a month. So, I guess I just have to make other arrangements.”

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Shannon had helped her mother make the trip last week and says she initially didn’t believe her mother when she told her her car had been stolen. Shannon says she is still in disbelief and finds it hard to fathom why people would do something like this in the first place.

After contacting the police, Shannon took to social media to warn those in the community of potential vehicle thefts. She is asking those who may think about stealing someone’s car to think about what it could mean to someone’s livelihood.

“It’s a lifeline, and that’s how you look at it is, it is, it’s her lifeline,” Shannon says.” “She’s gone through enough, and as unfortunate as, you know what, if you needed a car, people can help you, you know what I mean? Like, there’s, I don’t know if it’s an organized crime thing, I don’t know if it’s kids, I don’t know if, you know just- these people don’t think how it reacts, and I’d love to know which is why I made a Facebook post on it.”

While Down does not expect her car to be found, she says she hopes her story will help the community stop these thefts in the future. Shannon adds for the community to “stay vigilant”.

Since posting on social media, Shannon says she has seen an outpouring of support for her mother, as the community has been offering to help wherever it can. Anyone who may have information is encouraged to contact the Medicine Hat Police Service.