Makynna Tumlinson "brightened everybody's day," her mom Stephanie said in a tribute
Credit: Waldo Funeral Home
NEED TO KNOW
- Makynna Tumlinson was on her way to start a new summer job when she died in a car crash on Wednesday, June 3
- She rear-ended a commercial truck in Grayson County, Texas, after failing to maintain control of her vehicle, according to authorities, per CBS News
- The 18-year-old prom queen and student council president was born with a 2% chance of survival, her parents said
A prom queen who was born with a 2% chance of survival died in a car crash last week, her heartbroken family has shared.
Makynna Tumlinson, 18, from Tom Bean, Texas, was on her way to a new summer job when the accident happened, her parents told local media outlet KXII.
The teen rear-ended a commercial truck at 3:44 p.m. local time on Wednesday, June 3, the Department of Public Safety told CBS News. Authorities said she was driving north and failed to maintain control of her vehicle, striking the rear of the truck.
The driver of the truck, 37-year-old Hector Ivan Mejia Garcia, was taken to the hospital, but his injuries were not thought to be serious, the outlet reported.
PEOPLE reached out to the Texas Department of Public Safety for updates but did not immediately hear back.
Credit: Waldo Funeral Home
After Makynna's father, Tommy Tumlinson, checked his daughter's location and found it at the crash site, he drove to the scene. "From that point on we were just panicking, you know, hoping that they got something wrong,” her mother, Stephanie Tumlinson, told KXII.
“Nobody should have to bury their children. It's the hardest part," she added. "I keep thinking it's a nightmare that I'm going to wake up from and that she's going to walk in the door."
Stephanie told the outlet that Makynna was born with a 2% chance of survival, explaining that her family was told she would be stillborn, but she "beat those odds."
Her family added that she was prom queen, student council president and a cheerleader, and that she helped support other students who were being bullied.
Per her obituary, she was "very involved in her community," "always made a point to put others' needs before her own" and was her brother Brayden Tumlinson's "built-in best friend."
“I had moms reaching out to me that I didn't even know, saying that their kid was bullied until they met Makynna. I had always brought her up that way," Stephanie told KXII.
"I'm hoping that she's known for the girl that never turned down a friend, that she would have befriended anyone at all ages," her mom added.
Friends and loved ones have turned her parking space at Tom Bean High School into a memorial, leaving flowers, stuffed animals and candles in tribute to Makynna, who her mom said was called "Sunshine, because she brightened everybody's day."
The school hosted a remembrance event the day after Makynna's death and paid tribute on Facebook, writing, "Our hearts are broken by the tragic loss of our beloved student."
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In a Facebook statement of their own, her family thanked the local community for their support. "From texting, calling, all the hugs, contributions, food, supplies, prayers, just everything, it just shows the heart that this community has," they wrote.
"No words will ever really show how much we appreciate each and every one of you."
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