Retired teacher's neighbors pray for her recovery after hit-and-run crash

Prayer vigil held for 75-year-old avid tennis player

MIAMI LAKES, Fla. – A group of Miami Lakes residents met Thursday night to pray for a retired Miami-Dade County Public Schools teacher who was seriously injured in a hit-and-run crash while walking in their neighborhood. 

Natalie Farber, 75, suffered several broken bones and a head injury during the crash Saturday, according to Frank Farber, her ex-husband. She remained at Jackson Memorial Hospital. 

Farber's neighbors remember her as feisty, athletic and energetic. They also know she is an avid tennis player, so they held a prayer vigil at a Shula's Athletic Club tennis court. It was the same court where she played the morning she was struck. 

The group lit candles and a few released star-shaped balloons. 

"I've never seen anybody like her," friend Andrea Gil said.

Detectives are still searching for the driver who struck her in the area of Fairway Drive and Bedlinton Road.

Officers are asking anyone with information about the hit-and-run to call Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. There is a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the case. 

"I would hope that that person would come out and do the right thing," friend Wendy Hammond said.


About the Authors

Nicole Perez is the the primary co-anchor of Local 10 News at 4 p.m., 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. She first joined Local 10 in July 2016 as the morning traffic reporter.

The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.

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