ALOHA, OR (KPTV) -
A growing memorial of flowers, stuffed animals and handwritten notes mark the spot where Max McGregor, 17, was hit and killed by a car while walking home from school Tuesday afternoon.
Family friends described Max as kind, friendly, funny, with a passion for engineering.
"He would design things in his spare time; he wanted to get into airplane design and pursue a career in that," said family friend Dillon Prickett. "He was doing really good in school."
McGregor had just started his junior year at Health and Science School, a magnet school in the Beaverton School District.
"Max was a bright student. He will be missed," said Principal Steve Day. Grief counselors were on hand at the school Wednesday for classmates, friends and staff.
The Washington County Sheriff's Office is still investigating the deadly crash, but a spokesman says McGregor had just stepped off the bus and was walking on the sidewalk, just around the corner from his home when he was hit.
Investigators say the driver, Michelle Young, 41, veered off Southwest 185th Avenue and jumped the curb. The car struck McGregor, then continued another 60 yards through two yards and fences before coming to rest against a house, according to investigators.
Sandy Abbott, who lives in the house the car crashed into, said Young appeared to be having a seizure.
Irene Young told Fox 12 her daughter had a seizure earlier in the day. Before the crash occurred, she had called to tell her mother she would be leaving the hospital after receiving treatment.
"She still had her hospital band still on her arm, and I'm wondering why she was even driving if she had a seizure," said Sandie Abbott.
Michelle Young remained hospitalized on Wednesday, and her mother told Fox 12 their hearts break for the McGregor family.
"Doesn't seem real," said family friend Dillon Prickett. "The hardest part is seeing the family. Each new family member that walks though the door ... it's just another heart breaking, again and again."
McGregor lived with his mother and was the youngest of three boys, one of whom is a U.S. Marine stationed in North Carolina.
Donations can be made to the Max McGregor Memorial Fund at any U.S. Bank Branch.
The Washington County Sheriff's Office wouldn't comment on the possible medical factors which contributed to the crash, but a spokesman says investigators are still awaiting a toxicology report on the driver. Once complete, the case will be forwarded to the Washington County District Attorney's Office for review.
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