More than $350,000 has been raised to support the family of a pastor and father of four who was struck and killed by a driver while bicycling with friends on a Southern California highway. The driver fled the scene before being taken into custody nearby.
Eric John Williams, the 45-year-old founder of Community Church of West Garden Grove, was killed last week while cycling near Huntington Beach.
A GoFundMe page set up by Williams’ sisters-in-law describes Williams as a man who “spent his life serving others,” saying he and his wife, Robyn, just celebrated 20 years of marriage.
“Eric was a Godly man with a heart for Jesus and for people,” Robyn Williams’ sisters wrote in the post. “He was kind, funny, and steady in his faith, always lifting others up.”
The fund, which had raised over $355,000 as of Monday afternoon, is intended to help support Robyn and their children through the immediate aftermath and into the future.
Williams was riding along Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach with two friends last week when they were hit by a sedan that veered onto the shoulder of the road, KTLA reported.
Williams was pronounced dead at the scene. The two other cyclists suffered serious injuries, including broken ribs, a fractured spine and ankle, and multiple bruises.
Police identified the suspect as Amber Kristine Calderon, 43, of Long Beach. Authorities said she did not stop after the collision and continued driving with visible damage to her Mercedes-Benz sedan, including a missing side mirror and significant front-end impact.
Her car had a flat tire, but she reportedly drove another two-thirds of a mile, bypassed a kiosk at a state park parking lot without stopping, and was ultimately blocked by another driver who had witnessed the crash and followed her into the lot.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office charged Calderon on Wednesday with one felony count of hit-and-run causing permanent injury or death and two felony counts of hit-and-run with injury. If convicted, she faces a sentence of up to five years and four months in prison.
Williams was known among his community for his faith and his love of cycling. Before founding the Community Church, he served as a teaching pastor at Seaside Community Church in Huntington Beach.
Josh Coy, his brother-in-law, said Williams often reimagined how a church could serve its community.
On months with a fifth Sunday, he would replace the typical service with “Sunday serve days,” leading groups in helping senior residents, doing housework for neighbors, or cleaning up beaches.
“I think in his life as a pastor, he tried to think about things of what could we do differently,” Coy told The Orange County Register.
Williams’ children — Julia, Jeanette, Alice and James — range in age from a toddler to a high school freshman.
Coy recalled how much time Williams spent with his kids, saying he “taught me a lot about being a father.”
Friends said Williams had a passion for cycling and helped start the Over The Hump Mountain Bike Race series held at Irvine Lake.
Robby Knutsen, who met Williams as his youth group leader and later served alongside him in ministry, described Williams as a mentor, telling the newspaper that he was the “most intentional man that I know.”
Many gathered Friday night for a candlelight vigil at Eastgate Park in Garden Grove to honor Williams’ life. Mourners included church members, family and friends.
