Hunter Himes, 15-year-old from Downers Grove, dies after a year of battling injuries

Hunter Himes, the 15-year-old Downers Grove boy who was struck by a car while riding his bike home from a friend's house last year, died Sunday from injuries sustained in the accident.

Hunter was riding his bike on the sidewalk along Lemont Road on Feb. 26 when he was hit by a truck making a right turn from Lemont onto Beller Drive, according to the accident report.

Hunter was rushed to Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital, and the accident left him with a severe traumatic brain injury.

Throughout the past year, the community rallied around Hunter and his family with vigils, dinners and fundraising events, as well as a petition to install tougher penalties for striking a pedestrian. The effort adopted orange, Hunter's favorite color, on T-shirts and ribbons.

The driver in the accident, Timothy Hagan of Darien, was found guilty in November of a traffic citation — failure to yield to pedestrian on a sidewalk — and a judge sentenced him to 300 hours of community service and ordered him to pay a $1,500 fine.

In his ruling, the associate judge said that he was giving the toughest penalty he could.

The accident left Hunter in a permanent vegetative state, and at the November court hearing his mother, Terra Idhe, said his condition had worsened. Hunter was placed on hospice care after his parents learned he would not recover from his injuries, she said.

Visitations will be held from 3 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at Modell Funeral Home, 7710 S. Cass Ave., Darien. Because of parking constraints, a continuous shuttle bus will run from Lakeview Junior High School, 701 Plainfield Road, to the funeral home from 4 to 9 p.m.

A funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church, 8404 S. Cass Ave., in Darien, followed by a private interment.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking donations be made to Hope For Hunter at Charter One Bank.