Fitzherbert Slowe, eldest of 13 children, killed in car crash in Queens
NEW YORK -- A great-grandfather and pillar of his family and community was killed in a car crash in Springfield Gardens, Queens on Monday.
CBS New York spoke to his heartbroken siblings and parents on Wednesday.
"It's a shock to everyone, so we're just encouraging each other," Rita Dennis said.
Dennis was mourning the loss of her brother, 71-year-old Fitzherbert Slowe, better known as "Chicky." He had just left work to drive to pick up dinner for his colleagues on Monday when he was killed.
"He just stepped out to get the food, and that was it," Dennis said.
Police said Slowe was driving on Guy Brewer Boulevard at 6 p.m., when a 30-year-old driver going eastbound on South Conduit Avenue ran a red light and crashed into him. Slowe was taken to Jamaica Hospital, where he died.
"He was very loving to us, very kind," mother Rita Slowe said.
The 93-year-old said her son was the first born of 13 children, the rock of their family, who helped move his many relatives to New York City for better opportunities 20 years ago.
"He's the one who brought us here from Guyana, and he was always with us. He never leave us. He never show us a bad face," Rita Slowe said.
Fitzherbert Slowe leaves behind a wife and 10 children,15 grandchildren and a great-grandchild.
Family members said he was filled with life and not ready to retire. Following a career in telecommunications, he started driving Ubers and recently started a new job caregiving for seniors.
Police said the driver of the other vehicle was still being treated at the hospital on Wednesday night. No arrests have been made.
"You can do as much as you can to protect yourself, to be safe, and yet still ... so I think that was his fate, which is very sad," Dennis said.
Fitzherbert Slowe's sister said he was always careful, responsible and full of life, loved chess, cooking, and, most of all, his family time, adding she wishes they could all hug him again.