'Our sky has fallen': Widow pens heartbreaking letter to New Zealand after rear-end crash

The widow of a man who was killed in a tragic car crash in Auckland has written a moving letter to New Zealand community after a Givealittle campaign raised more than $169,000 for the family.

Zhengwen Alan Hu died last Monday while waiting at a red light in Botany Downs. His car was the third in a line of three stationary cars when a fourth one struck them at high speed.

Mr Hu was the only casualty in the crash, and left behind his wife, Hua Yang, and two daughters, aged eight and 11.

Ms Yang has now spoken out about her family's heartache for the first time in a letter to the 'angels' that donated, thanking the New Zealand community for "all the generous acts, words and donations".

She described her husband as "a rock" and reveals it "it has literally felt like our sky has fallen".

"Our blissful family of four was completely unprepared for such a tragedy... I don't think it is possible to realise how much your spouse is carrying for you until they are gone," she wrote.

Ms Yang wrote that after initial hesitation, she's now pleased to have accepted the financial assistance from Givealittle donors, which has now topped $169,000.

She has now asked the page be closed, as she is aware there are a lot of needy people across the country, and wants the kindness to now flow to causes that benefit them.

Dr Jacky Lam, the first responder who set up the Givealittle page, told Newshub the incredible sum of money has "shown the love and generosity" of the New Zealand community.

Read the full letter:

 

Dear Angels in our life,

Thank you! Thank you everyone for all the generous acts, words and donations.

Our blissful family of four was completely unprepared for such a tragedy. Alan was our rock. It has literally felt like our sky has fallen. I don't think it is possible to realise how much your spouse is carrying for you until they are gone.

We've had an amazing group of very supportive group of family, friends and colleagues. They have been there for us 100 percent from the moment the police showed up at our doorsteps. It is with their encouragement and also the thoughtfulness of Dr Jacky Lam that the givealittle page was started. Dr Lam, whom we had and have never met, reached out to us and has done so much for our family.

I was initially hesitant, fearing that increased publicity for the incident may impact the children. Our altered financial situation took a few days to dawn me. In the end, I am glad that we accepted the offer of assistance. The public's generous support has been incredible. In addition to the funds, which will be a tremendous help to us as we try to navigate our lives from now, the kind messages have been a ray of light in our darkest hours. In the past few days, the messages, many from complete strangers, have moved us to tears. Everyone's warm words and support has given us hope.

I would like to assure everyone who has donated to us, privately and through Givealittle, that the funds will be put to good use. We will use it with gratitude in our hearts and I try to repay everyone's kindness by doing my best to raise our girls to be the most upstanding members of society.

We would once again like to thank every single person that has helped us in anyway. Thank you for helping us through this most unfortunate tragedy. We hope that life can return to normal or become some version of normality as soon as possible.

Thank you very much!

Your sincerely,

Hua Yang (Alan's wife)

Newshub.