HASLET — Neighbors organized a garage sale on Sunday to help the family of a Haslet father who was killed while jogging last week.
"It’s really wonderful to see these people come together," said Ross Hankins, who helped organize the sale. "The community just rallied together."
Neighbors have been rallying together ever since a hit-and-run driver killed 37-year-old Walter Hopkins last week. On Friday, close to 200 people lit candles and prayed at a vigil in his subdivision.
“We have a very, very strong and tight-knit community,” said Jennifer Cobb, a friend of Hopkins who helped organize the gathering. “When one of ours falls, we all fall.”
Tarrant County deputies executed a search warrant Friday to examine a pickup truck believed to be involved in the hit-and-run death.
Hopkins was struck from behind about 5:45 a.m. Thursday in the 13800 block of Willow Springs Road near Haslet in northern Tarrant County. Investigators later found a damaged 2007 blue Ford Ranger in a north Fort Worth auto repair shop.
“We’re as sure as anyone can be we have the car that killed Hopkins,” said Terry Grisham with the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department.
Still, investigators have not yet made an arrest. Grisham said detectives have made contact with the truck’s owner but, said that person is not cooperating.
“We do not have a physical person... suspect... right now we can put in that vehicle,” he said.
Detectives have a lot of evidence to process, but are also asking for any witnesses who might have seen the truck and its driver — before or after the accident.
“We’re angry at the situation, but not the individual,” said Hopkins’ brother-in-law, Richard Massey. “We’re not seeking any revenge.”
Hopkins, who was a father of four, coached his children’s sports team and was well known in his neighborhood.
Friends and neighbors donated hundreds of items for Sunday’s sale, which will continue on Monday.
“People would come up and buy water for $60 just to pay their contribution,” said organizer Michelle Dalton. “It’s pretty amazing.”
Donations to the “Buddy Hopkins Fund” can be made at any American Airlines Credit Union office.
E-mail jbetz@wfaa.com
