Guillerma Balanza, who was killed by a pickup truck Friday while walking in a marked crosswalk in Kapolei, had plans to move back to her native Philippines with her family in five years.
Her younger sister, Maria Balanza Bautista, described her 70-year-old sister as a sweet woman who helped care for her father and other family members in Hawaii and in the Philippines. "She took care of everyone," Bautista said.
A native of Pangasinan, Philippines, Balanza often sent money to relatives in the Philippines to help support them, Bautista said.
Balanza died after being struck by the truck early Friday morning while crossing an intersection near Kamaaha Avenue and Kekuilani Loop. Balanza was on her way to catch a bus to a McDonald’s restaurant on Nimitz Highway where she had worked as a janitor since 1988.
The cause of death was blunt impact to her head, torso and extremities, according to the city Medical Examiner’s Office. The manner of death was classified as an accident. The truck’s driver was not injured.
Balanza lived with Bautista and their father, Ignacio, in a home in the Iwalani subdivision of Kapolei, a short distance from the accident site.
Family members created a makeshift memorial — complete with bouquets of flowers, a white candle and a small landscape painting accompanied by a passage from Psalms — at a street sign post near where Balanza died.
Bautista said her sister was a happy and helpful person as well as a hard worker. She also loved animals, owning two dogs and cat.
Bautista recalled that when she last saw her sister, on Thursday afternoon, Balanza gave her $20 for gas, packed food and filled her Hydro Flask with water to help her get ready for work. As Bautista prepared to drive off, she said Balanza blew her three kisses and told her to be careful while driving.
Bautista said a traffic light is needed at the intersection because of speeding.
"That’s a very dangerous area," she said.
A few years ago, Bautista said, her SUV was struck by a vehicle traveling south on Kamaaha Avenue while she was turning into the Iwalani subdivision. She said the vehicle that struck her was speeding. The speed limit on Kamaaha Avenue is 25 mph.
Balanza’s death is the ninth pedestrian fatality on the island in 2015, compared with 11 at the same time last year.
Balanza is also survived by brothers Alejandro, Benjamin and Dominador; sisters Leticia Segundo and Masa Daus; and nieces and nephews.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
