Remembering Timothy: Martin and Georgette Connors placed a wreath near a tree on the Archbishop Ryan lawn to mark the second anniversary of the death of their 15-year-old son, Timothy. Alaina, 7, and Charlotte, 4, were his loving sisters. TOM WARING / TIMES PHOTO
Timothy Connors’ family and friends recently marked the two-year anniversary of his death by placing a special wreath in front of a growing tree planted in his memory a year ago.
The wreath and tree are on the grounds of Archbishop Ryan High School.
Timmy, as he was known to family and friends, was a 15-year-old freshman at Ryan when he was hit by a car and died on the afternoon of May 17, 2011.
He was leaving school for the day when he was hit on busy Academy Road as he ran to catch a bus.
An oak tree was planted on the lawn to mark the first anniversary of his passing. The wreath featured the likeness of Spiderman, as the teenager was a big fan of the superhero.
Timmy attended Nativity of Our Lord Elementary School from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade, then spent two years at Our Lady of Port Richmond after a neighborhood consolidation of Catholic schools.
Martin and Georgette Connors are grateful for the support of the Ryan community.
Next year, they plan to install a plaque to mark the three-year anniversary of their son’s death. Timmy would have been a member of Ryan’s Class of 2014.
The Connors family, which also includes 7-year-old Alaina and 4-year-old Charlotte, would like to see traffic slow down on Academy Road.
They suggest a traffic light south of Comly Road, a left turn signal into Ryan’s entrance and cameras that would take pictures of the license plates of cars going through red lights.
Motorists going through red lights would receive a $100 ticket in the mail.
Martin Connors, a police detective, writes a blog, “Forever Fifteen,” in memory of his son and hopes to bolster a scholarship fund named in his memory.
He also speaks with moms and dads grieving the death of a child and supports an effort to extend the federal Family and Medical Leave Act to cover parents who’ve lost a child.
Contributions can be made to the Timothy Connors Memorial Scholarship, 11201 Academy Road, Philadelphia, PA 19154. ••
