WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The LaCorte family of West Palm Beach said their holiday season feels completely different this year without their loved one.
Vincent LaCorte, 22, was involved in a motorcycle crash on Australian Avenue near Seventh Street in West Palm Beach last Tuesday. He died days later in the hospital.
Now, his family is carrying the pain and recalling the phone call they never expected.
"I couldn't think straight," Dana LaCorte, the victim's mother, said. "I just knew I needed to get to the hospital. I was just hoping we'd get there in time. I didn't want him to die alone.”
The family said medical personnel rushed LaCorte to St. Mary's Medical Center where he died days later.
"He hung on as long as he could, and we're proud of him," Giovanna Villar, the victim's sister, said. "We don't hold any anger toward him for leaving us as soon as he did."
The family said LaCorte was selfless, funny, bubbly and the glue of the family.
"He was the one who kept us together. He made sure that we always talked and got together on holidays and birthdays," Villar said. "He was the one calling every day, every one of us. He called us every day."
They added that LaCorte was looking forward to a new chapter in his life — being a chef at Nobu restaurant in Manalapan. However, now his family is left piecing together how his life ended.
"The majority of what we've spent the entire past week doing is trying to figure out how his last moments were like and why he ended up where he ended up," Villar said.
The family started a GoFundMe for funeral expenses. Loved ones will be holding onto his memory in their hearts.
"I love him," LaCorte said. "Rest in peace with God in heaven."
