The third of seven children, La’Darious Wylie was protective of his siblings. The 11-year-old proved how much when he gave his life for his little sister Sha’Vonta, 7, as a car sped at them while they were waiting at their bus stop in Chester, S.C., at around 7:30 a.m. last Tuesday. Seeing the vehicle headed toward them, La’Darious lunged, pushed his sister out of the way, and received the full impact of the crash — which “several” other children waiting at the stop witnessed, according to a local news report.

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La’Darious’s mother, Elizabeth McCrorey, and her daughter Sha’Vonta. (Photo: CBS12)

“He knew to look out for her,” his mother, Elizabeth McCrorey, told The Herald of her 4-foot-tall, 75-pound hero, who died the following day of his injuries from the accident.

The driver, Michelle Johnson, however, didn’t look out for anyone. She reportedly sped off before Sha’Vonta had even gotten up from the ground. Two days later, Johnson, 57, was charged with felony hit and run and now faces up to 25 years in prison. When she posted her $25,000 bond on Friday, she said nothing to explain or defend herself. “I don’t know how that person can sleep at night knowing they hit a child,” family cousin Kimberly Robinson told The Herald.



Police investigate the bus stop where La’Darious Wylie was struck. (Photo: CBS12)



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Unanswered questions don’t haunt La’Darious’s mom, though. “I don’t hate her,” McCrorey explained. “I just wish she had stopped.” The mother is focused now on just moving forward and honoring her beloved son, for whom a funeral was held on Thursday of this week. “She donated his organs [so that] her son could save another child’s life,” Robinson wrote on a GoFundMe memorial page that she set up for the McCroreys.

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Brooklyn Park in Chester, S.C. (Photo: CBS12).

Robinson is not alone in her appreciation for the selfless fifth-grader. A local civic group has started an online petition to rename Chester’s Brooklyn Park — near the site of the crash — the La'Darious Wylie Park of Brooklyn. The gesture “would be an honorable way to remember him,” Chester County Supervisor Shane Stuart told The Herald, calling the idea “fitting.”

La’Darious was, after all, “a wonderful son, brother, and student,” Robinson wrote. “He was loved by all that knew him. He played football, a very smart young man that had his whole life ahead of him. … He will be missed beyond words.”

A memorial for the late La’Darious Wylie. (Photo: CBS12).

(Top photo: CBS12)





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