WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – Family members of the Rose Hill father and son who died last week in a crash involving a wrong-way driver on K-96 in east Wichita are remembering the strength of their bond.
Thirty-one-year-old Randall and 11-year-old Eli meant the world to Laveta Henrickson, Randall’s mother and Eli’s grandmother. She said they were inseparable and will be missed by everyone they touched in life.
“I feel like I’ve lost everything, my baby and my grandson,” she said.
Laveta recalled a final experience Randall enjoyed with Eli.
“Well, they were on their way back home because [Randall’s] wife bought him a muzzleloader, he really wanted it,” Laveta said. “And they needed a cleaning rod for the muzzleloader and they went to get that.”
A vehicle traveling the wrong way collided head-on with Randall’s truck. The father and son and the driver of the wrong-way vehicle died at the scene.
“Something like this to happen is really hard,” Laveta said.
She said Randall and Eli enjoyed time outdoors, including fishing.
‘If you’ve seen any of the pictures out there, Eli with his big fish that he caught — that was his first fish by the way that he caught — it was huge,” Laveta said.
She said Randall always put his family first.
“Everybody’s been talking about what a great dad he was, and he was, and a great husband. He was a good guy but he was an amazing son. Anything I needed, I’d call and he was here,” Laveta said.
She said Eli cared for everyone he met.
“Always telling you he loved you, always. You’d see him and, (he’d say) ‘Hi grandma, I love you,’ (he’d leave and say), ‘I love you grandma.’ He was just a really good kid, I’m gonna miss him a lot,” Laveta said.
More than anything, she said she wants her son and her grandson to know that they are still loved.
“That I love him, that I love [Randall] so much and I am so sorry, but I would tell him how much I loved him and I would hug Eli one last time and just tell him how much he mant to me,” Laveta said.
A GoFundMe and a MealTrain are set up to support the Henrickson family.
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