Parents of teen killed in hit-and-run: ‘He did great things’
Patrick Montgomery, 17, was an organ donor, good friend to many
SAN JOSE >> About two weeks before Danielle and Kevin Montgomery’s youngest son, Patrick, was killed by a hit-and-run driver just blocks from their South San Jose home, the 17-year-old high school senior was dealing with some challenges. So Danielle Montgomery pulled Patrick aside and reassured him.
“I said, ‘Patrick, you’re going to come out of this. You’re going to do great things,’” she recalled saying.
“He said, ‘You think so?’
“I said, ‘I know so. I believe it.’”
As the Montgomerys mourn the loss of Patrick and the heartbreaking reality that he “won’t get the opportunity to do some of the things that we thought he would do,” they are finding comfort in the impact their son made during his “17 years, 10 months and two days” of life.
“Patrick became an organ donor,” Danielle Montgomery said. “Today, his heart and other vital organs are living on in other people. “And he did great things.”
The youngest of three brothers, Patrick had a “big personality,” was a huge fan of the Golden State Warriors and could recite every word from the 1999 movie “Toy Story,” his parents said. A senior at Foothill High School in San Jose, Patrick had some “struggles academically” yet was considering college or the military as options after graduation, his parents said.
Danielle Montgomery said Patrick recently took a journalism class, and she wondered if his love of basketball could have sparked a passion for her son to become a sportswriter.
“I just could envision that opening up a new world and a new understanding and maybe a like for school and how he could utilize that in his future,” she said.
Just before 6:30 p.m. April 5, Patrick walked out the front door of his family’s house near Branham Lane and Snell Avenue. About 10 minutes later, San Jose police received a call regarding a hit-and-run in the 4000 block of Park Paxton Place, a few blocks from the Mont
gomerys’ home.
Although San Jose police are still investigating what occurred, detectives said Patrick had contact with at least one person in a vehicle. As the light-colored sedan drove away, Patrick “held on to or was dragged by the vehicle,” police said. He eventually fell to the ground and came to rest against a parked vehicle.
“Our detectives are working hard on the investigation since the circumstances are not clear,” police Sgt. Enrique Garcia said previously.
Patrick was rushed to a hospital and died the next day, his father said.
“He went walking down the street and he didn’t come back,” Danielle Montgomery said. “Whether he went to meet someone, or it was random, or something happened, we don’t know.
“He didn’t do anything that seemed out of the ordinary.”
In the days after Patrick’s death, his friends and classmates from Foothill High organized three vigils, including one on Park Paxton Place that drew about 50 teens, Kevin Montgomery said. The students invited Patrick’s parents to attend.
One female classmate said Patrick had saved her life with his constant encouragement, Danielle Montgomery said. That was just one of the stories classmates told.
“We’ve just been overwhelmed by the love and support from the kids,” said Kevin Montgomery, an ordained pastor and active member of the California Air National Guard out of Moffett Field. “And that has really encouraged me. That something he learned in this house was then transferred to the people that he knew and impacted them in a positive way.”
On Friday, students at Foothill High were encouraged to write letters to Patrick, his father said. The letters were burned, “signifying the smoke was going up to him, so he gets the letters in that way,” Kevin Montgomery said.
“What we’re finding out is what he meant to us, he meant to his friends,” Danielle Montgomery said.
In the days before his death, Patrick was getting excited for the start of the NBA playoffs and the potential of the Warriors winning a third championship in a row. His love of basketball also allowed the family to watch games together, his mother said. Patrick would often talk basketball with his older brothers, Eric Braxton, 31, and Kevin Montgomery II, 26.
“It’s not just that he loved basketball and playing it, he could recite the stats,” Danielle Montgomery said Saturday morning, about eight hours before the Warriors opened the 2019 postseason with a win over the Los Angeles Clippers. “He could tell you their height, what college they came from and when they were drafted.”
As for Patrick’s favorite player?
Steph Curry, of course. It was easy for his parents to approve his choice. As devout Baptists, the Montgomerys appreciate that Curry writes a Bible verse, Philippians 4:13, on his shoes. The scripture reads “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” Kevin Montgomery said.
The only jersey his mom would allow him to wear with someone else’s name on it was Curry’s.
The family has been overwhelmed by the amount of support from Patrick’s friends and classmates, who put together a donation box to help pay for funeral expenses, and members of the Emmanuel Baptist Church in San Jose and the 129th Rescue Wing out of Moffett Field. A large memorial remained visible Saturday near the scene of the crash, and the Montgomerys’ living room was adorned with flowers and pictures of their youngest son.
“He made an impact,” Danielle Montgomery said. “And he will continue to make an impact in the lives that he has saved.”
A GoFundMe campaign was established by a relative, Alisha Renee, to raise $5,000 to help the family with expenses.
Anyone with information about the hit-and-run can contact San Jose police Detective Troy Sirmons at 408-277-4654. Those wishing to remain anonymous can leave a tip with Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at 408-947-STOP (7867) or svcrimestoppers.org. Tipsters may be eligible for a cash reward.
Memorial services for Patrick Montgomery will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday at Emmanuel Baptist Church, 467 N. White Road in San Jose.