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Car wash fundraiser held for Peoria teenager killed in tragic accident

Posted at 8:39 PM, May 06, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-07 01:38:40-04

They are a family rooted in helping others. Her father is a firefighter in the northern part of the state. Her mother is a nurse at Phoenix Children's Hospital. But right now they need the help of the community after their daughter was taken from them in a terrible accident.

Alexa Flores, 15, was the passenger in a car that was headed to her high school Wednesday morning.

On Saturday, some of the Flores' second family with the Williamson Valley First District held a car wash and raised $2,600 to go towards Alexa's funeral expenses.

"There are really no words that you can give to the Flores family, except how sorry we are," said Mike Samudio with the fire district. "[We] just want to continue to give and that's why we're out here."

Despite the windy conditions that were picking up dust in the area near Interstate 17 and Pinnacle Peak Road, there was a constant stream of cars waiting to gdonate to Alexa's family.

"To me, that is the purest form of love," said Alexa's uncle, Houston Crandall. "...Just giving back with nothing in return."

Crandall got the call early Wednesday morning in Texas about his niece. He hoped he would hear better news before he boarded a plane to Arizona. The doctors telling them there was not much they could do.

"The injuries are non-repairable," Crandall said. "So, that was the hardest part."

Peoria Police said the driver in Alexa's car failed to yield from a stop sign at an intersection near 69th Avenue and Jomax Road. They collided with a red truck.

Flores was on life support after the crash, but it was announced Thursday by police that she had died.

Two other teenage girls with serious injuries were taken to the hospital via helicopter and ground, a police spokesperson said. Another teenager was transported to the hospital by ground with minor injuries.

The 42-year-old man driving the pickup truck was not hurt and is cooperating with the investigation.

Now, Crandall and the family are trying to stay positive as they take time to sort out their feelings.

"I don't want to just go straight to being busy," Crandall explained. "I want to give it the attention it deserves and grieve in a healthy way."

Crandall said the support of the community through car washes, like the one on Saturday, and on social media is making every day a little bit easier.

"We're grateful that the world can see her," Crandall said. "And people that don't know her can get a chance to see the person she was."

The Flores family also asking for something incredibly selfless. They plan on donating some of the funds they have received to the driver, who is suffering serious injuries herself.

This is the link to that GoFundMe page. You can click here to donate to Alexa's GoFundMe page.