The Ferguson community is coming together in support of a family dealing with the loss of Ashley Hogan, a 35-year-old mother of five who was struck and killed by a train on Christmas Eve. Hogan's car became trapped on the railroad tracks in Berkeley, Missouri, just after 3:30 a.m., according to WOWT. As the tragic news emerged, the Ferguson Police Department organized a donation drive, rallying the community to provide support for Hogan's grieving family.
Remembered as a hardworking individual devoted to her daughters, the news of Hogan's death has resonated deeply within Ferguson and beyond. Officer Andrae Spraggins, who had known Hogan since high school, spoke about the loss saying, "She was a good person, hard worker, and one thing I know for certain is that she loved her kids. She loved her daughters, her five girls. That's all she talked about,", according to an interview obtained by KSDK. In response, the Ferguson Police Department is collecting donations including clothing and shoes, recognizing the grandmother's role, who now cares for the children on a fixed income, according to First Alert 4.
The tragedy of the sudden accident coincides with the Missouri State Highway Patrol's ongoing investigation into the question of how Hogan's car ended on the tracks, and whether a potential medical episode occurred before the collision. The overwhelming community support for Hogan's family includes various forms of donations. "It's a terrible tragedy," Officer Spraggins stated as per KSDK, reflecting on the incident and the community's response.
Vernadine Hogan, Ashley's mother, has expressed her profound gratitude towards the community's generosity in these trying times. "All I can say is I am so grateful and I am so thankful grateful and thankful of the immense support the community's provided," Hogan told First Alert 4. Facing the challenge of raising her granddaughters, she added, "I'm almost 60, I never would've thought in a million years I'm going to be raising children again but here I am, here it is, we all miss my daughter very much." The Ferguson Police Department is serving as a drop-off location for the donations between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., with people donating clothing and gift cards even before the drive officially started.
