A 23-year-old Woodstock man who died when his truck crashed into several trees near Crystal Lake was laid to rest Monday as his family remembered him for his “magnetic energy that lit up every room he entered.”
Daniel H. King, 23, of Woodstock, died on September 20 in a crash that the Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded to around 2:19 a.m. near the 9400 block of Butternut Drive in unincorporated Crystal Lake.
Sheriff’s deputies first on the scene reported King was unconscious and not breathing and they were unable to open the driver’s side door, according to fire department radio traffic.
Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department Battalion Chief Jim Sustek said fire crews arrived within six minutes and found the heavily damaged vehicle had driven off the roadway and crashed into a tree.
Paramedics determined King was deceased at the scene, Sustek said.
King was born in Sheffield, Alabama, and was the fourth child in his family, according to his obituary.
The obituary said he moved several times throughout his life before settling in Crystal Lake and building a life there.
“He was effortlessly funny, incredibly smart, and had a magnetic energy that lit up every room he entered,” his obituary said.
A preliminary investigation shows King was driving a 2024 Toyota Tacoma westbound on Butternut Drive when he failed to negotiate a curve, the sheriff’s office said.
The Toyota exited the roadway to the south, traveled across Chestnut Drive and struck several trees. King was the sole occupant of the truck.
“He knew no strangers, only friends he hadn’t met yet,” his obituary said.
Firefighters extricated King from the wreckage just before 5:30 a.m. after the coroner arrived.
An autopsy performed on September 21 showed King died of blunt force injuries from the crash, McHenry County Coroner Dr. Michael Rein said.
His family said King loved adventure and exploring new places while balancing a “relentless drive to succeed.”
“Daniel had a way of making people feel heard, making you feel understood, and feeling like you mattered. He gave the best hugs. The kind that would make you feel safe, loved, and like everything was going to be okay, all while popping your back at the same time,” his obituary said.
Speed, weather conditions and alcohol may have been contributing factors in the crash, the sheriff’s office said. Toxicology test results are pending.
King is survived by his parents, his four siblings, a nephew, his grandparents and many other family members and friends.
A visitation was held Sunday afternoon at Davenport Family Funeral Home in Crystal Lake, with a celebration of life following that evening at the Old Town Hall in Crystal Lake.
A second visitation was held Monday morning ahead of an 11 a.m. funeral service at the funeral home. King was buried at Crystal Lake Memorial Park.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Major Traffic Crash Investigation Unit.