HASTINGS, Mich. — "Slow down and move over" is what Keagan Spencer's family and members of the tow truck community want everyone to remember when they see a tow truck on the side of the road. Billboards in areas around Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Battle Creek are spreading that message after Keagan's death.
On Saturday, state police said, Keagan was towing vehicles when he stopped on the median on M-6 near Kraft to help a lost dog. Police said a car driving eastbound lost control and drove onto the median, striking Spencer.
"You sit back and you're like, 'Am I crying just tears of pride, or tears of sadness?' But it's hard to decipher because you're so proud of what he did," said Keagan's mother, Miko Garrison. She said her son was highly involved in the tow trucking community online, and that the family has been overwhelmed with support coming in from across the country.
Keagan was a third-generation tow truck driver from Hastings, his family said he was a true example of an American tow man.
"He exemplified what it truly was to be a tower, and he had a heart of gold. He was a servant like I've never seen before in our industry," said his father Matt Spencer. He shared a story about his son helping drivers he saw stuck on Christmas Eve. "He saw some people that had a car stuck in a driveway. Wasn't called there, just saw that these people needed help, stopped, pulled in there, pulled them out of their situation, and then just waved his hand and said Merry Christmas."
Keagan also leaves behind a fiancé, a young daughter and a soon-to-be stepson.
"When you are traveling at high rates of speed, you need to be aware of your surroundings. I can't stress that enough," said Garrison, emphasizing that tow-truck drivers put themselves at risk to help people in difficult situations. "Just like your EMT, if somebody were to need medical assistance, we all step back and let that crew do their job. These gentlemen needed that space and that happens to be your highway, your back country road, wherever you need it. That's where these guys go. And they need that respect too."
Now Keagan's family and the tow trucking community want to make the roads more safe for all workers.
"If you see a flashing warning light, it just takes a couple seconds just to give them a break, and if you can't give them a lane, just slow down. Be wary it is their work environment," said Spencer.
"Here's stands two people that have to go a lifetime that had their child taken away. He was taken away from his child, and now all we can do is rally around and make sure she can remember her dad who deserved to come home that day," said Garrison.
"A lot of times we're underneath vehicles trying to get them prepared to tow, and we don't have a choice but to be in harms way," said Randy Hammer, owner of Tiger's Towing in Battle Creek who has his own story of being hit by a driver while on duty. Hammer's wife Karrie designed the billboards urging drivers to slow down and move over.
"We are tired of burying driver after driver of getting struck and killed on our nation's roads. And if our family can promote Keagan in this manner to bring awareness, that us as tow truck drivers, we're tired. We don't like this, we don't enjoy it, and we are going to stand up, and we're going to have a voice," said Spencer.
Keagan's family says he was the breadwinner for his fiancé and children, and that a GoFundMe has been set up for their support.
The community of Hastings will also be honoring Keagan with a tow truck procession on Saturday, November 11 at 9 a.m.
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