Greg Zaffke II will spend Mother's Day the same way he did last year: privately, with his fiancee and his father, remembering his mother, who was killed on her motorcycle by a driver districted while painting her fingernails.

"We kind of laid low and stayed together as a family," said Zaffke, 32, of Wauconda, remembering the haunting day a year ago. "It was days after the funeral, and we were recovering from that."

On May 2, 2009, Lora Hunt's Chevrolet Impala slammed into Anita Zaffke, as she sat on her motorcycle at a red light near Lake Zurich. On Thursday, a Lake County jury found Hunt, 49, of Morris, guilty of reckless homicide in Zaffke's death.

Zaffke hopes that his mother will be remembered for being more than the victim of a distracted driver.

"It's not about her death. It's more about her life and remembering how much she loved me," he said.

Anita Zaffke was an administrative assistant when she decided to go to college to pursue a degree in liberal studies and political science, he said. In 2005, she received a bachelor's degree from Roosevelt University.

"She was very intelligent, and she went to learn and to improve herself," Zaffke said. "She didn't go for a piece of paper, or a diploma, she just really wanted to learn. She chose liberal studies and political science because she wanted a broad education, and she wanted to know as much as she could about the world."

Zaffke said he is determined to make others aware of the dangers of distracted and reckless driving. In January, he and his father started the Black Nail Brigade, a foundation that tries to increase awareness of such dangers.

Supporters have been painting the nails on one hand black in memory of Anita Zaffke and as a way to start conversations about distracted driving.

"Our story is bigger than my mom," Zaffke said. "I love my mom, but I understand that there are other loved ones out there dying."

During the trial last week in Lake County Circuit Court, prosecutor Mike Mermel said it would be a mistake to compare painting nails while driving to using a cell phone or another distraction.

"She might as well have been in the back seat making a sandwich," he said.

Hunt's attorney, Jeff Tomczak, said Hunt, who is a nurse, has found support and solace from her family, friends and her faith.

"She is a Christian lady, and that's carrying her through," he said.

Tomczak said he will file a motion for a new trial — a prerequisite for an appeal — though he said there was no decision yet whether to pursue one. He was preparing for Hunt's sentencing, assembling statements from family, church members and people with whom she works, who will testify about her character.

Tomczak hopes that Hunt will receive probation, since she has no prior criminal history. She could face up to five years in prison.

Hunt, he said, also hopes that the case will serve as a lesson to others about the hazards of distracted driving.

"I do really believe this will raise awareness," Tomczak said. "Lora does hope this will save lives."

Hunt's driver's license will be revoked for at least one year, when she can reapply for one, he said.

Zaffke will push for a permanent revocation. Because his mother will never drive again, "her killer should not be afforded that privilege," he said, adding that no matter what sentence Hunt receives, he will never have a future with his mother.

"I will never get my mother back, so there's no real reconciliation for my family," he said. "But the precedent has been set that our society is not going to sit back and let this happen to anyone. There is a consequence to the action you take behind the wheel."