GREENDALE, Ind. — Lee Thomas was described as "fun-loving" and could "crack at joke with the best of them."
The 19-year-old Taylor High School graduate was hit and killed by a driver Thursday on US-50 near Greendale, Indiana as he tried to push his disabled vehicle off the roadwayt, Indiana State Police said.
Around 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Thomas was driving west on US-50 when his vehicle broke down in the road. Thomas got out of the vehicle and was trying to push it from the rear while a 15-year-old passenger steered in the driver's seat, ISP said. While he was pushing, Thomas and his vehicle were hit from behind by another driver. From there, the vehicle was pushed into the path of another driver traveling east on US-50 and struck again.
Thomas was pronounced dead at the scene, while the 15-year-old and driver of the first vehicle were treated for minor injuries.
ISP's investigation into the crash is still ongoing; while toxicology results are still pending, ISP said it doesn't suspect drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash.
Former Taylor High School football coach Mark Miller recalled how great of a person and teammate Thomas was.
"Lee was, he was always one of those kids that you just wanted to be around," Miller said.
Miller began coaching at Taylor during Thomas' freshman year, and Miller said he had the pleasure of coaching him through his senior year.
"He was the same kid from day one until the last game of our senior season," Miller said. "He was just, he was a very steady kid. Fun-loving, awesome to be around. (A) great teammate, great personality. You knew Lee was there by his presence. You could feel it."
Thomas was also a first-year psychology major at Mount St. Joseph University. The university posted about his death on social media saying he was described as "a smiling, funny, positive presence."
After his death, Three Rivers School District — which Taylor High School is part of — shared a GoFundMe that was created Friday for those who would like to support the Thomas family. The GoFundMe's goal was $10,000, and as of Saturday afternoon it had surpassed $15,000.
While Miller recognizes the monetary donations don't take away the pain of what happened, he believes the GoFundMe speaks to the legacy Thomas left behind and the character of those in Cleves.
"(It) speaks volumes for the community that, you know, Taylor is in, and Cleves, Ohio, it's a very tight-knit community," Miller said. "We stick up for each other. We, you know, we go to bat for each other. We look out for each other."
Miller said as a parent himself, the loss weighed on him as he put himself in Thomas' family's shoes.
"He was very much a lunch pale and hard-hat type of kid. He would come to work every day and, and do the best that he could, and it rubbed off on his teammates and it rubbed off on me," Miller said. "It's just a very tragic situation."
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