Over $65,000 raised for family of Montco girl, 7, killed by car
An online fund-raising campaign has generated more than $65,000 for the family of a 7-year-old girl fatally struck by a car in Montgomery County on Monday.
An online fund-raising campaign has generated more than $65,000 for the family of a 7-year-old girl fatally struck by a car in Montgomery County on Monday.
As Jenna Demar's family and friends prepared for funeral services Friday morning, money and messages of comfort continued to stream in from friends and strangers.
"Jenna was truly a beautiful, bright and joyous light and her memory will be a blessing," the GoFundMe page says of the Maple Glen Elementary School second grader.
"It's been a hard week at school," said Tim Bickhart, the principal. "The family is very fortunate to be in a community where there is just tremendous support."
Bickhart joined her kindergarten, first- and second-grade teachers, a school counselor, and a couple hundred other people at Friday's services at Congregation Beth Or, where the Demars are members.
"I will always remember Jenna for her very powerful eyes and her beautiful smile," Bickhart said, adding that Jenna had many friends and a love for life.
Jenna and her father, Michael, 38, of Upper Dublin Township, were walking in the 700 block of Susquehanna Road when they were struck by a vehicle around 7:40 p.m. about a third of a mile from their house. They were headed home from the Fort Washington Fire Company's annual fire-prevention and safety fair at the township building, which typically draws 1,000 people to see vehicle-rescue, K-9, and fire-extinguishing demonstrations and displays of emergency responders' vehicles and equipment.
Jenna died Tuesday shortly after 1:30 p.m., according to the fund-raiser's organizer.
The driver stayed at the scene and is cooperating with the investigation, Upper Dublin police said.
In a message to the school community, Superintendent Deborah S. Wheeler called Jenna's death a "tragic loss" and said she anticipated there will be a tree planting later this year in her memory.
More than two dozen photographs of a smiling Jenna through the years cover the online fund-raiser page. The organizer said the money will go to support her family in any way needed.
610-313-8207 @MichaelleBond