A fundraiser has gathered over $60,000 for the family of a Grayslake man, who was expecting his first child, that was struck by a car near Wauconda and later died.
Matthew Evers, 34, of Grayslake, died around 6 p.m. Sunday at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The Wauconda Fire District and Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded around 11:45 p.m. June 19 to Route 120 west of Fisher Road in Wauconda Township, which is near Lakemoor and Volo, for a report of a vehicle crash.
Sheriff’s deputies arrived and located a pedestrian, identified as Evers, with life-threatening injuries, according to Lake County Sheriff Spokesman Lt. Christopher Covelli.
A preliminary investigation showed Evers exited a vehicle on Route 120 minutes before the crash and began walking, Covelli said.
Evers was walking along the shoulder when he entered the westbound lanes of Route 120, Covelli added.
A westbound Chevrolet Impala, driven by a 30-year-old Round Lake man, struck Evers.
Evers was initially transported by ambulance to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in unincorporated Barrington.
Due to the severity of his injuries, he was transferred by medical helicopter to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge where he later died.
Sheriff’s crash investigators are working to determine if impairment was a factor in the crash and why Evers exited the vehicle on a busy roadway, Covelli said.
A GoFundMe started by Talia Ruff on behalf of Matthew Evers’s wife, Ivy, has raised $63,300 as of Saturday.
Ruff said that the family was expecting their first child, Parker, in November.
“Matthew was a loving husband, son, brother, dog-dad, Cubs fan and so much more. The pain those close to him feel is unimaginable,” Ruff said in the post.
“Now more than ever, Ivy and baby Parker need our help. While we all counted down the days for when Ivy and Matthew would become parents to baby Parker, we now have the opportunity to help with unexpected medical and financial expenses,” Ruff added.
The crash remains under investigation by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Technical Crash Investigations Unit and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.