The grieving family of a Good Samaritan teen who was tragically killed say they aren’t surprised he spent his final moments trying to help others.
A close-knit community in central-west NSW has been rocked by the death of John Keegan, 15 after he was hit by a truck on Friday night near a dangerous intersection.
The year 10 student had been a passenger in his friend’s Toyota ute when it rear-ended a BMW waiting to turn right off the Mitchell Highway near Orange in what was described as a ‘minor crash’.John had rushed to the aid of an elderly couple in the BMW when he was hit and killed by a passing truck travelling in the opposite direction.
In a cruel twist, John’s grandmother sadly lost her battle with dementia within minutes of his death.
The town has rallied behind John’s shattered family- parents Penny and Jason, older sisters Xanthe and Bonnie and younger siblings Eva, Freya and Beau.
The tight-knit family has shared cherished photos which sjpw John’s cheeky personality, contagious personality and a ‘beautiful spirit which will never be forgotten’.The family take comfort knowing how ‘Johnno’ spent his final moments.
‘We wouldn’t have expected him to do anything else, we are beyond proud of his actions in those final moments,’ sister Xanthe told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to be his big sister.’
Their mother added: ‘Jase and I are so proud of John who was everything to us.
‘We were lucky to have been touched by his beautiful spirit.’
‘We are so proud of John and the love people have for him and that is a direct result of the love he had for others.’
The popular teen had many friends who meant the world to him.
‘To become John’s mate meant your parents gained another family member,’ Mrs Keegan said.
‘At times that meant you had to feed and clothe him and Jase and I feel truly blessed that so many families were prepared to take on that role of “second mum, second dad”. This meant so much to John and ourselves.’ Xanthe said John’s cheeky smile and contagious personality will never be forgotten.
‘I can honestly say there was never a dull moment, if he wasn’t cutting mullets or arrows into someone’s hair, he was lighting little fires in the back of dad’s ute,’ she said.
‘John was just perfect in my eyes, he made sure everyone knew they were special and could put a smile on anyone’s face.’
Michelle and Scott Maunder initially had doubts when their son Oliver became best mates with John, thanks to his larrikin nature.
They now can’t imagine life without him.
‘We could tell that he loved a good time so we wondered if Oli was making a wise choice but within no time at all we knew why Oli loved his mate John so much,’ the Maunders said.
‘His fun loving, big hearted, cheeky nature quickly made a mark on each of us too and we all loved having him part of our family.
‘Like many families in Orange we are devastated and feel like we have lost a brother and a son.’
Earlier this week, Ms Keegan has recalled the frantic call from her son’s friend about the crash, as well as the mad dash to the scene where police held her back, shielding her from the horrific smash
Describing the call to 7News, Ms Keegan said the tragedy had been a ‘horrible nightmare’.
‘Penny, I’m so so sorry, we’ve had an accident,’ the friend told her.
‘I said, ‘where are you darling? We’ll come and get you’, just thinking they were bogged or something, I don’t know,’ Ms Keegan said.
‘He said there was a lot of people there… ‘it’s really bad’.’
Ms Keegan and her husband Jason found out at the hospital an hour later that their eldest son hadn’t made it, only to receive more devastating news.
Her dad rang 20 minutes later to say her mum Jenny, 76, had lost her battle with dementia, having spent all of the last week caring for her.
The Keegans have been humbled by the public support and generosity, including a GoFundMe page which has raised more than $75,000 within three days.
One friend has set up a online schedule for others provide meals and snacks for the Keegans in the coming weeks.
‘The support we have received from the whole community is overwhelming and just shows what an amazing and caring young boy he was,’ Xanthe told Daily Mail Australia.
John’s tragic death has sparked an outpouring of community grief as his school and junior footy clubs led the heartfelt tributes.Our thoughts, prayers and love are with the family and friends of Year 10 student, John Keegan, who has been tragically killed in a motor vehicle accident,’ James Sheahan Catholic High posted on Monday.
‘Our school community is devastated by this terrible accident. John will be dearly missed by all in our school community.’
The school has also set up a Facebook page celebrating John’s life, which has been inundated with photos posted by friends and family.
Orange City Rugby Union Club players held a one-minute silence to honour John on Sunday.
‘Yesterday we all woke to some very sad news, with the sudden and tragic passing of one of our own who played in the 16s, John Keegan,’ the club posted.
‘His family have been a part of our club since his father Jason strapped on the boots for us in the late 80’s/90’s.‘His junior rugby league team described John as an instrumental team member and great mate to all since his under 6s days.
‘That cheeky smile, his hard working attitude, his toughness on the footy field, his willingness to help around the club, and his genuine friendly nature, will always be remembered by all of us as ‘Our John’,’ the CYMS JRLFC club wrote.
‘How blessed our club has been to have witnessed John grow and develop through the years, not just as a player but also as a champion young man.
‘He asked for so little, but he gave us so much.’
First responders were confronted with an ‘absolutely horrific scene’ on Friday night, as described by NSW Ambulance Inspector Peter Rowlands.
‘You couldn’t sit down and add up the number of people this is going to affect, including the young man’s family,’ he said.
The government was alerted to the danger of the notorious intersection earlier this year, cited in a letter penned by a concerned motorist.
The resident urged Transport for NSW to execute road upgrades after sighting several near-collisions, which led to the installation of new warning signs and repainted road lines, with plans to widen the road within the next year.Orange MP Phil Donato said he wrote four letters to the minister over a six month period.
‘Hopefully this intersection now gets the upgrades locals have been calling for,’ the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party deputy leader wrote on Facebook on Monday night.
‘Should not have taken a tragedy to bring this to a head.
‘Thoughts and prayers for all involved and to the first responders who attended.’
John’s 17-year-old friend and the elderly couple were taken to Orange Hospital in a stable condition, where the 71-year-old woman was treated for a fractured pelvis.
The 74-year-old driver of the truck was also taken to hospital for mandatory testing.
A crime scene was initiated with the crash investigation unit to investigate, with a report to be prepared for the coroner.