FREEBURG, Ill. – The community of Freeburg, Illinois was in mourning Thursday evening as a vigil was held for a young man who was hit and killed by a vehicle on his way from school earlier this week.

Mason Schmittling was riding his bike in the 600 block of North State Street when he was struck by an SUV being driven by a teenager.

Schmittling was rushed to a local hospital for treatment, where he later died from his injuries. He was 14.

The eighth-grader’s death made a big impact, not only on young people that shared the classroom with Schmittling, but older people as well.

Family members say he lived with ADHD, but instead of letting it affect him, the young man embraced it in every way.

That pride showed even more in his musical tastes, so the family played his favorite song, “Hunnybee” by the Unknown Mortal Orchestra, to turn some frowns into smiles. Because it’s going to take those smiles to both remember Schmittling’s precious life and hold on to the memories left behind.

The Schmittling family set up a community fund at Citizens Bank. You can drop donations off at branches in Freeburg, New Athens, and Mascoutah to help the family with funeral expenses in care of Christina, Eric, or Mason.