Heather Payne, owner-operator of SubZero Ice Cream in St. Thomas, Ont., says the tragic collision that claimed the life of a boy less than a week away from turning 12 years old, happened just across the street from her shop.
Her business is one of several in the community finding ways to support the family of Aiden Curtis, who was fatally struck by a pickup truck Tuesday afternoon while walking on the sidewalk on Talbot Street.
Four others were injured in the accident, one seriously, and a 19-year-old faces charges related to impaired driving.
“I actually work with a cousin of Aiden, and I was able to reach out to see if we could start collecting donations,” Payne said.
“And obviously, the community support in St. Thomas has not gone unnoticed, and people were begging for places to donate and show their support.”
SubZero Ice Cream is donating all tips collected between 2 p.m. Friday and 9 p.m. Sunday to the Curtis family.
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Destiny Cousins, a partner at Railway City Surplus, said businesses along Talbot Street will be putting out red balloons on Monday to recognize what would have been Aiden’s 12th birthday.
Railway City Surplus also said it was donating profits from sales on July 6 to the Curtis family, noting that Aiden’s older sister, Brooklyn, volunteers at the surplus for her school hours.
“I’ve known Brooklyn for quite some time and I consider her like family,” Cousins said. “When I heard about it, it was just super tragic and I figured what a way to honour them and help them out and support them as much as I could.”
“I’m not close with her family so I can’t offer a hug or anything like that because I don’t know them. What I could offer was an entire day dedicated to their loved one that sadly was in the accident.”
Cousins said in addition to all profits, Railway City Surplus also put out a donation box. Brooklyn was at the store on July 6, and Cousins said community members were offering their condolences.
“She wanted to be here. We were just trying to support her as much as we could.”
Roughly $300 was raised through the donation bucket, but Cousins was unable to say how much was raised through the day’s profits because she didn’t close that night.
In an obituary, Aiden is described as a boy with a “smile that could light up a room” who will be “forever loved and missed by all who knew him,” including his parents and two siblings.
A funeral service is scheduled for Tuesday.
Four others were injured in the crash on Talbot Street near the intersection of Caso Crossing just before 5 p.m. on Tuesday. One woman is fighting for her life in hospital and three others suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Police have not released their names.
Nicholas Lemke, 19, faces charges including impaired operation causing death and impaired operation causing bodily harm. He was released on bail and is due back in court Aug. 8.
– with files from Global News’ Marshall Healey.
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