A “loving” California mother was accompanied by her two children before she was taken off life support on Friday.
Tracey Gross, 51, was struck by a suspected hit-and-run driver on State Route 76 in Oceanside as she biked home from her boyfriend’s house on St. Patrick’s Day around 11:30 p.m.
After the accident, she managed to stay alive for almost a week with the help of life support.
A photo taken at the hospital captured the heartbreaking scene, which showed Gross’ daughter holding her mother’s limp hand.
On Friday evening, before Gross was taken off life support, family members and staff at Scripps Green Hospital, where she had been admitted, took a walk of honor – a tradition meant to pay tribute to donors who are on life support and whose organs will be harvested. .
“I think she lasted long enough for everyone to see her and wave goodbye,” Gross’ daughter, Angela Smith, said NBC San Diego.
A heartbreaking photo captured the moment Tracey’s family gathered to say goodbye
Gross, 51, was biking home from her boyfriend’s house Sunday evening when she was struck by a vehicle
Gross was found on the side of the road, unconscious and with serious injuries
‘She was my best friend. I didn’t have a sister, but we got along so well. She called me every night. I lost my best friend, my mother,” Gross’ daughter said.
The daughter was home in Florida when she heard the news that caused her to “hyperventilate.”
“I couldn’t believe it because I had talked to her the night before,” Smith said.
Tracy Gross’ son, Alec Perez, who lived with his mother and was called to the scene of the accident to identify her, was also in the hospital.
Perez said his mother was “a good, loving mother to everyone, not just me, not just my sister, everyone.”
Gross’ son was frustrated that someone could do something so horrible to his mother.
Gross’ daughter, Angela Smith, said her mother called her every night and that her mother was her “best friend.”
Gross’ son, Alec Perez, said his mother was a “good, loving mother to everyone.”
Gross’ organs will be donated to people who urgently need them
‘I feel lost and angry. I’m so angry,” Perez said. “Who could do something like that?”
Investigators believe Gross was hit by a silver Kia Optima, a model made sometime between 2013 and 2015.
When Gross was found unconscious and wracked with serious injuries on the roadway, investigators could not find her bicycle, only debris from the car that crashed into her.
When the bike was eventually recovered, it was found two miles away, near College Boulevard, and that’s how far some family members believe the driver dragged it.
Perez believed the driver must have realized he had hit someone.
‘There’s no way they could have just hit her without seeing or hearing it. They know they did the wrong thing,” he said.
Oceanside authorities are searching for the alleged hit-and-run driver, who remains on the run. They believe the Kia vehicle should have a damaged right front bumper and headlight where it crashed into Tracy Gross.
Investigators believe the driver likely lives in the area where the crash occurred.
While the family wants the suspected driver to be brought to justice, they are more focused on preserving the memory of their beloved mother.
Gross’ son lived with his mother and had to identify her when her unconscious body was found on the side of the road
Gross’ daughter had only spoken to her mother the night before and began “hyperventilating” when she heard the news
The family and hospital staff took a walk of honor on Friday – a tradition honoring an organ donor about to be removed from life support
Tracey Gross was a postal worker and kept her body in great shape by eating healthy and cycling everywhere
“I don’t want to know anything about it,” said the daughter. “Even if the law doesn’t get them, karma will.”
Despite the sad moment, Gross’ family still managed to feel a sense of pride in their mother.
Tracy Gross was very disciplined about her health. She ate healthy food and cycled everywhere, including to the post office where she worked as a mail carrier.
Now others can benefit from Gross’ generosity and her good health.
‘Many people will benefit from this, all organs.’ Gross’ daughter said. “She took really good care of herself.”