Joshua Ortiz: Boy, 10, who 'always had a smile' dies after being hit by speeding bus
ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA: Joshua Ortiz, a 10-year old boy from Pennsylvania, died when a speeding bus hit him a few blocks from his school. His family will spend the holidays collecting funds for his funeral.
Apparently, Joshua was running a few minutes late to class and he decided to run across the street when he was close to reaching his school. This was when Joshua was hit by the Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority bus, as reported by police authorities.
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Joshua Ortiz was a student at McKinley Elementary School. The school said on their Facebook page, "Our hearts are so sad over the tragic passing of Joshua yesterday. We are so grateful for the outpour of support, prayers, comfort, and extra hugs from our community."
The post also added, "Additional counselors were available to students and staff yesterday and today. Please know that our support for Joshua’s family and ALL of our McKinley families will not stop over Christmas break and will continue once we are back together on January 3rd. The safety and well-being of our students, families and staff are our top priority. Please continue to pray for Joshua’s family and all of our McKinley community. We will get through this like we get through everything - TOGETHER. If you or your student need immediate support through this tragic loss, please message us privately."
The Superintendent at the school said, "I speak for the entire Erie’s Public Schools family when I say how saddened we are by this tragic accident. Our hearts are with the student’s family, friends, classmates, teachers and all who knew him." He continued by saying, "We are doing everything we can to support that community and will continue to do so. Counselors and other professionals are present at McKinley today as part of our Student Assistance Program and will continue to be available to anyone who needs support in the days ahead. We have also made sure families are aware of additional community-based services to help them during the district’s holiday break."
The Ortiz family has started a GoFundMe to collect funds to cover the little one's funeral costs. Joshua's mother writes on the page: "Hi my name is April I am fundraising for my son's funeral; Joshua Ortiz, who got hit this morning and passed away anything will help. I appreciate and thank anybody who is able to help out he was such a happy boy; always had a smile on his face so energetic so out going." It has currently recieved over $25,000.