TORONTO — A beloved Canadian comic says a newspaper delivery woman saved his mother's life.
Moreen Thomas, 87, mother of Dave Thomas, was released from hospital recently after a mid-November tumble that left her with a broken femur and lying semi-conscious in her Burlington, Ont., condominium for two days.
Dave Thomas, of "SCTV" and "Strange Brew" fame, says a Hamilton Spectator newspaper carrier noticed the papers piling up outside his mother's condo and took action.
Moreen has wanted to track down the carrier, Sanna Van Sinclair, since she got out of the hospital to thank her.
Van Sinclair spied the pile of newspapers on Moreen Thomas's doorstep and thought it odd because the elderly woman would have cancelled delivery if she was going to be out of town.
The carrier says that as she waited for the elevator, she heard a faint voice calling for help, so she ended up calling 9-1-1.
"If she hadn't been on the ball, I wouldn't be here," Moreen Thomas said in an interview. "I think that's terrific."
Her sons, Dave and Ian — the famous Canadian rock musician whose big hit was "Painted Ladies" — also think Van Sinclair is terrific.
In appreciation, Dave and Moreen Thomas invited Van Sinclair over for dinner last week at his mother's new retirement residence.
"I gave her a big hug and thanked her for giving my mom another chance," Thomas told The Canadian Press from Los Angeles, where he's working on the show "The Blacklist."
Moreen Thomas also gave her saviour thanks.
"I gave her a hug and I gave her a cheque," she said. "How else do you say thanks?"
How much was the cheque?
"I can't tell you, that wouldn't be polite," she said.
Dave Thomas said he received the dreaded 4:30 a.m. call on Nov. 20, 2015, while he was on the West Coast.
"It was scary when police called and said they had my mom there, and I was like 'What the hell?'" he said, adding he called his brother right away.
Ian Thomas went to the hospital while Dave Thomas booked the next flight back to Canada.
Moreen Thomas underwent surgery and is feeling much better.
"When you know you've been held over the flames and you're back, it's a beautiful thing," she said. "I had to give up my lovely condo and that does distress me, but I see that my boys are feeling better. They want me around for a wee while longer."
Dave Thomas said his mother has learned a lesson.
"The maddening part is she has one of those life alert buttons on a necklace, but she refuses to wear it," Thomas said. "She's wearing the necklace now — I told her if you don't wear that, I'm going to be so nasty to you."
Moreen Thomas says she's wearing the necklace so her boys "will stop bothering her."
