12-Year-Old Wisc. Girl on Way Home from Funeral Dies in Head-on Crash with Vehicle that Crossed Median

Passon Family.Photo:Go Fund Me

Go Fund Me

A 12-year-old Wisconsin girl who was traveling home from a funeral died in a car crash last week that left her father, mother and brother hospitalized.

The Pepin County Sheriff’s Office in Durand, Wisc., said in a news release last week that Joeclynn Passon, 12, was pronounced dead at the scene of the two-car crash, which also killed the 18-year-old driver of the other vehicle.

Police said Ethan Whitwam, 18, was driving alone when his car veered across the center lane, crashing into the Waseca, Wisc., family’s pickup truck in what police called a “very serious” head-on collision.

Jessica, 36, was treated and released from the hospital, while Steven, 40, and his son suffered what police called “critical injuries.”

A GoFundMe set up to help the family said the Passons were traveling home from a relative’s funeral in Wisconsin when the crash occurred.

The fundraiser said Drake, the 8-year-old, was discharged from a hospital in Minnesota last Saturday, while his father suffered “extensive leg injuries and has multiple surgeries ahead of him.”

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“The sudden loss of Jocelynn has left the family’s hearts shattered,” the fundraiser said. “As the family grapples with grief, they are faced with the daunting task of arranging a proper farewell for Jocelynn.”

In anobituary, Whitwam was remembered as “a force of boundless energy, hard work & determination, and had a love for all things that define the fabric of small-town life.”

source: people.com