Last winter, Smadar Brandes was on her way home after a late night class when she decided to walk because there were no buses.
Living in what she considered to be a safe neighbourhood, she’s now thankful to be alive.
“I remember all of it very vividly,” Brandes said. “It was an unseasonably warm night for January, it was January 27th.”
On her way home, she says a man blocked her path and attacked her near the Villa-Maria Metro station.
Brandes said she was stabbed and the blade was lodged in her neck.
READ MORE: Woman in hospital after unprovoked stabbing in NDG
She was sent to Montreal General Hospital and the staff was able to save her life.
Now, she’s looking to give back to those at the hospital.
As an amateur cello player, Brandes is thanking the doctors by organizing a fundraising concert to benefit the hospital’s trauma centre.
She suffered nerve damage from the incident, but she will play at the concert.
“My ability to play has been greatly affected,” Brandes said. “I can’t play at the level that I’m used to, but the fact that I’m able to play at all is still pretty miraculous.”
The concert is scheduled for June 17 at 8 p.m. at Loyola High School in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce.