SANTA CLARA, Calif. – A community is mourning, following the death of a Santa Clara University student killed on his way to class on Thursday.
Funeral services are being planned for the victim, who has been identified as 18-year-old Kephas Pope.
The teen was struck by a vehicle near the university campus on El Camino Real and Accolti Way shortly before noon. It happened on the second to last day of classes before students went on break for the Thanksgiving holiday.
“When officers arrived, they located a male pedestrian on the ground with visible injuries,” Santa Clara police said in a news release. The teen was rushed to the hospital. “But unfortunately, he succumbed to his injuries and passed away,” police said.
They said that the driver remained on scene and was cooperative with investigators. Neither drugs nor alcohol were suspected in the collision.
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The Santa Clara County Office of the Medical Examiner-Coroner said it appears Pope was a resident of San Jose.
He was a sophomore at Santa Clara University, where his sister is also a student and where his father also attended school.
The teen was being remembered as a bright young man who had a warm spirit and great sense of humor.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family with costs including those for the funeral, which his father said was going to be held on Dec. 2 in the city of Sanger in Fresno County.
“All are welcomed and everyone’s presence will be a great comfort to me,” the teen’s dad, Nathan Pope shared, announcing the memorial plans.
On the GoFundMe, a family friend shared their sorrow for the loss and paid tribute to the young man.
“Kephas brought so much joy, warmth, and laughter to us,” The Zhang Family wrote. “He was such a smart, kind, humorous and innocent soul who felt like another son and brother to us. We love him dearly and will always cherish his memory.”
