- Krystle Campbell is one of three people who died in the blast
- She was driven by a strong work ethic
- Mother: "She had a heart of gold. She was always smiling"
Medford, Massachusetts (CNN) -- Patty Campbell worried her daughter Krystle might face amputation after a bomb blast at the Boston Marathon wounded her.
The family said doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital told them Campbell had survived -- but that they had to work hard to save her leg.
But when her parents were allowed to see her, they made a heart-wrenching discovery.
The wounded woman wasn't their daughter at all, but her close friend, Karen Rand, who had gone to see the race with her.
Rand had been carrying something with Campbell's name on it. Doctors saw it and assumed it belonged to the patient they were working on.
A mother and daughter hold one another during a vigil for 8-year-old Martin Richard of Dorchester at Garvey Park in Boston on Tuesday, April 16. Two bombs killed three people and injured scores near the finish of the Boston Marathon on April 15. See photos from the attack.
A crowd holding candles gathers during a vigil on April 16 at Garvey Park in Boston for 8-year-old Martin Richard of Dorchester, who was killed in the marathon bombing.
People gather in Boston Common on April 16 for a candlelight vigil for victims of the bombings in Boston.
Hundreds gather at the impromptu vigil on Boston Common.
Emerson College students embrace one another at the vigil on Boston Common on April 16.
Attendees of an interfaith service at Arlington Street Church on April 16 hold candles in honor of the victims of the bombings.
A woman uses her hand to keep wind from her candle as she stands with others around the pond in the Boston Public Gardens after a candlelight interfaith service at Arlington Street Church on April 16.
Mourners gather on the edge of the pond in the Boston Public Gardens for a candlelight vigil on April 16.
Visitors fill Arlington Street Church for a candlelight vigil on April 16.
Students from the Clifden Academy hold an American flag and candles during a vigil on April 16 in Dorcester, Massachusetts, in honor of 8-year-old Martin Richard, who was killed in the bombings.
American flags hang from a barrier on April 16 at a roadblock staffed by National Guard soldiers at the end of Boylston Street near the site of the bombings in Boston.
Mike Vitale, who lives in the Boston area, prays beside a makeshift memorial at a roadblock at the end of Boylston Street.
Emerson College students Rachel Ferullo, left, and Kathryn Waxman at a vigil on Boston Common for victims of the bombings.
Runners Judy Adler, left, and her daughter, Rachel Schapiro, embrace during a moment of silence at the Baptist Health South Florida Brickell Run Club event organized on April 16 in Miami in honor of victims of the Boston Marathon bombings.
Five-time Boston Marathon runner Jose Sotolongo, center, reacts during a moment of silence at the Baptist Health South Florida Brickell Run Club event in Miami on April 16.
The New York Islanders and Florida Panthers stand for a moment of silence for the bombings at the Boston Marathon before their game at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on April 16 in Uniondale, New York.
Members of the Boston Red Sox observe a moment of silence before their game against the Cleveland Indians on April 16 in Cleveland.
People walk Boylston Street where memorials have been set up to the corner of Berkeley after the barricades were moved back on April 16.
A woman prays at a security gate near the scene of the bomb attack where visitors have congregated on April 16. See the aftermath in Boston.
From left, Boston Marathon runners Tammy Snyder, Diane Deigmann and Lisa Kresky-Griffin embrace at the barricaded entrance to Boylston Street near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on April 16.
Two young girls leave flowers on the steps outside the home of 8-year-old Martin Richards, who was killed in one of the explosions at the marathon.
Several former Heisman Trophy winners, including former Saints running back George Rogers, right, observe a moment of silence for the bombing victims Tuesday before working on a Habitat for Humanity home in New Orleans.
Traders observe a moment of silence on Tuesday before the opening bell on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
The flag above the White House flies at half staff on Tuesday, April 16 in Washington.
The Minnesota Twins stand during the national anthem before their game on Monday, April 15, in Minneapolis, following a moment of silence to honor the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings.
President Barack Obama makes a statement about the bombings in the White House briefing room on Monday.
Players and fans observe a moment of silence before the San Antonio Spurs and Golden State Warriors NBA game in Oakland, California, on Monday.
A U.S. flag flies at half staff at the Capitol on Monday after House Speaker John Boehner ordered flags to be lowered.
Fans pause for a moment of silence before the NHL game between the Phoenix Coyotes and the San Jose Sharks on Monday in Glendale, Arizona. See the world reaction to the attack.
Mark Trumbo of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim stands during the National Anthem following a moment of silence to honor the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing before the game against the Minnesota Twins on April 15, 2013 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
Photos: Nation mourns Boston Marathon tragedy
Nation mourns Boston Marathon tragedy
Nation mourns Boston Marathon tragedy
Nation mourns Boston Marathon tragedy
Nation mourns Boston Marathon tragedy
Nation mourns Boston Marathon tragedy
Photos: Nation mourns Boston bomb victims
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Photos: Nation mourns Boston Marathon tragedy
Second bombing victim named
Bombing victim's mom: Everyone loved her
Boston remembers the bombing victims
New pictures of bomb fragments released
Mourners hug one another during a vigil for victims of the Boston Marathon bombings at Boston Common on Tuesday, April 16. The blasts exploded near the Boston Marathon's finish line on Monday, April 15, killing three people and injuring more than 170 others. See photos from the attack.
Attendees of the vigil sign a large poster in honor of the victims of the bombing on April 16.
Nicole Rand, left, who ran the marathon, embraces with her mother, Maureen Joham, on April 16 as she recounts her experience in Boston.
On the shared porch of their home in Medford, Massachusetts, on April 16, Colleen Howe, left, and Lisa O'Leary grieve for their neighbor, Patty Campbell, who lost her daughter Krystle Campbell in the bombings.
People walk along the barricade at Boylston Street on April 16, following yesterday's bomb attack on the Boston Marathon.
A man carries balloons, flowers and flags to a memorial for victims on April 16, just blocks from the scene of the bombings.
Unclaimed finish line bags litter the ground near the bombing sites. A day after the terror attack, authorities warned city residents to keep their guard up amid a massive investigation into the bombings.
A young runner, left, stops by a Boston church blocks away from the scene of the bombings.
Unused thermal blankets for runners are piled high near the scene of the bombings on April 16.
Investigators work at an area of the crime scene on Boylston Street on April 16.
Blood is visible on a sidewalk in front of a Boston store on April 16.
Flowers rest against a police barricade down the street from the Boston Marathon's finish line on April 16.
National Guardsmen look out from inside Boston's Back Bay Station on April 16.
U.S. military Humvees move down deserted Boylston Street on April 16.
National Guardsmen patrol the Back Bay Station on April 16 as security remains tight in Boston.
Pedestrians pass National Guard troops at a roadblock on April 16.
The unfinished meals of fleeing customers are left on tables at an outdoor restaurant in Boston on April 16.
People congregate at a security gate near the blast scene on April 16.
A man jogs down a street near the scene of the bombings on April 16.
A woman sits alone at a Boston cafe on April 16.
A woman carries a sign she made to support her runner husband near the scene of the bombings.
A police officer stands on duty in Boston on April 16.
People have breakfast at a Boston cafe on April 16.
A Boston police officer stands near blast sites April 16.
National Guard troops man a roadblock April 16.
A Boston police officer is heavily armed blocks away from the scene of the bombings.
A runners bib lies discarded April 16. See reactions from around the world.
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
Boston: The aftermath of terror
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Photos: Boston: The aftermath of terror
Rand survived, but Campbell, 29, did not.
She is one of three people who perished when the two bombs blew shrapnel through crowds of thousands at the iconic road race.
Rolling up her sleeves
Campbell was driven by a strong work ethic, and it got noticed by family and coworkers alike.
Former employers commended her diligence when lamenting her death.
"She was one of the hardest workers that we had," said Nick Miminos, manager at Jimmy's Steer House, Campbell's most recent employer. "She would get in the trenches and work right next to you. She wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty."
"Full of energy and hard at work," is how former employer Summer Shack, a seafood restaurant, described her in a statement on its Facebook page.
She rolled up her sleeves with a smile, her grandmother Lillian Campbell told CNN's Jake Tapper. "She was very happy, outgoing, a hard worker."
Campbell lived with her grandmother for a year and a half and was "great with me," she said. She was always eager to help.
Her grieving mother, Patty Campbell, couldn't stop sobbing long enough to read a family statement to the press. To her, Campbell was nothing short of the best.
"You couldn't ask for a better daughter," she managed to get across her lips.
"She had a heart of gold. She was always smiling," Patty Campbell said, as her son, Billy, clutched her in his right arm.
Bright eyes, vibrant smile
Looking at Campbell's memorial page on Facebook, it's easy to believe her mother. The page is covered with photos of the young woman's vibrant smiles and bright eyes.
On the deceased restaurant manager's private page, the family points visitors to the memorial site, which had garnered over 51,000 likes by early Wednesday.
Admirers have left behind thousands of condolences and prayers.
"This just makes me so sad," Robert Zeff wrote on the Facebook page. "I'm so sorry for Krystle and everyone who knew her and loved her."
"May God comfort your hearts and bring peace to your beautiful family at this difficult time," Samantha Gurskis-Pottinger commented.
But the page's owner has included a sterner message:
"We demand justice for Krystle!"
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