Jordan Thomas Laskowski died on his way home from a spring break trip with his family on April 4.
The family was traveling from North Carolina back to their home in the Chicago area when their vehicle experienced a “malfunction,” police tell PEOPLE
A father is mourning his 14-year-old son, who died in a car accident that also injured the boy’s sister while they were traveling back home after a spring break trip.
Jordan Thomas Laskowski died after he was ejected from a vehicle during a single-car crash on Friday, April 4, in Lebanon on Interstate 65, according to a statement from the Lebanon Police Department. A 12-year-old girl was also ejected from the vehicle and was transported to a local hospital.
A loved one confirmed on a GoFundMe page organized for the family that the surviving teen is Jordan’s sister, Riley, who was hospitalized with “serious injuries.” Their younger sister, Gracie, 8, was also in the vehicle, as well their mom and grandmother, but none of them sustained any injuries, according to the organizer.
The family was traveling from North Carolina, where they had spent spring break, back to their home in the Chicago area when their vehicle experienced a “malfunction,” Justin Fuston, a detective sergeant and public information officer with the Lebanon Police Department, tells PEOPLE.
The children’s mom, Taylor Kammes, 35, was driving.
“According to the driver of the vehicle, she’d been having issues with the vehicle for the last couple of weeks,” says Fuston, who notes “there was a car malfunction before the accident.”
An investigation is ongoing.
Jordan’s dad, who wasn’t in the vehicle, is devastated.
“This pain I’m feeling is overbearing,” Scott wrote in a Facebook tribute the next day. “I never got to say goodbye to my son. He was my best friend and everyone knew that.”
“I was so excited to watch him play high school football this year,” he added. “He was an amazing kid. Everything just ripped away. I love you, Jordan Thomas.”
In a message shared on the GoFundMe page, which has raised over $60,000 as of Wednesday, April 9, the organizer said gave more insight into Jordan’s bond with his father.
“The bond between Scott and Jordan was especially strong, founded on their shared love of sports, music, and their mutual passion for the Dallas Cowboys,” the organizer wrote. “Together, they cheered on their team, and it’s a memory Scott will cherish forever.”
Jordan was also remembered as being the best big brother to his sisters, not to mention “their protector and their hero.”
“Please take a moment to hug your children, tell the people you love how much they matter, and cherish every moment with them,” the organizer added. “Let us all honor Jordan’s memory by expressing our love for those closest to us every single day.”
