KENT COUNTY, Mich. -- Just one day after a car with five teenage passengers slammed into a tree in Alpine Township, one of them has died. Alyssa Eggerding, 16,passed away from her injuries around 2:00 p.m. Monday afternoon.
Eggerding was a student at Sparta High School, played varsity softball, and had a ton of friends. The community is focusing on getting through this difficult time and showing their support for Alyssa's friends and family.
"It is a little bit of a shock," said Sparta Superintendent Gordie Nickels. "This is somebody you've seen walking up and down the halls, laughing and talking with friends, goofing around. She played on our varsity softball team, so she has a lot of team mates and stuff like that. Then all of the sudden you have the realization that that person isn't going to be there any longer, so I think just trying to deal with that is a somber feel to the school right now."
Alyssa Eggerding along with Kaitlin Keeler, Olivia Lawrence, Alyssa Naughton and Armando Mendoza were all in the car which went off the road at the intersection of Vinton Avenue NW and Nine Mile Road NW and slammed into a tree around 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning.
"It was shocking to me," said Zaya Öke, a senior at Comstock Park High School. "I hung out with them two nights before and two days later I am hearing on the news that they are in critical condition. It sucks."
The Kent County Sheriff's Department say Mendoza, who was driving at the time, was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol, but appears to have been speeding when the crash happened. Officials also say he was driving on a level one restricted license, meaning he shouldn't have been driving with that many underage passengers or at that late hour.
The four surviving teenagers remain hospitalized: Mendoza and Naughton are in critical condition. Lawrence and Keeler are facing serious injuries.
"I think this was a huge eye-opener for young drivers and a lot of parents" said Öke.
Biggby Coffee supporting Alyssa Eggerding and Olivia Lawrence after their accident Sunday. Courtesy Facebook.
The loss is hitting the community hard with people posting messages of support all over sites like Facebook. Meanwhile, Sparta High School canceled their softball and baseball games for Monday night out of respect for Eggerding. The Biggby Coffee shop in Sparta has already set up a fundraiser to help out, raising more than $200 in just a few hours.
"We will continue with our grief counselors and our counseling staff and our school social workers to provide whatever support any of our students or family members need, we will continue to do that," said Nickels. "We want to give Alyssa's family a little bit of time, but we also want to find out how we can best support them throughout this time too. As we get a change to talk to them more we will find out a bit more about that."
The school also has poster boards and cards set up in their auditorium for students to express their thoughts and send their regards to Alyssa's family as well as Olivia Lawrence's family, the other Sparta High School student injured in the crash.
Funeral arrangements for Alyssa are still pending, but a GoFundMe page has been set up to help with those expenses.
