‘It doesn’t seem real’: Family shaken after Winnebago man killed in head-on crash

WINNEBAGO, Ill. (WTVO) — 26-year-old Alec Hoffman was killed in a head-on collision on Sunday, and his family is still reeling from his sudden death.

“It doesn’t seem real. It seems too impossible. It really hasn’t hit,” said Alec’s sister, Melissa.

“He’d always let us know where he was going and if he was going to be a lot later than we expected, he would always give us a call. Well, he didn’t call that night, and the police called. They stopped in here at 8:00 to inform us that he died in a car accident,” his father, Jim, said.

Hoffman was driving on Highway 81 in Avon, Wisconsin, when the driver of a Ford F350 pickup truck crossed the center line, crashing into his Nissan Sentra head-on.

For Alec’s family, all they’re left with are their memories.

Melissa recalled going with him to a Pitbull concert. Jim remembers times when they worked together. His mother, Pam, recalled time spent at home as they watched TV.

“Every morning when he got up, he’d want me to turn on and watch Lassie with him. And every night when it came for work, he wanted to watch another Lassie with me. It was just a special kind of time we had together,” Pam said.

The memory they say they don’t wish to forget is that of his smile and caring nature.

“He always had a smile on his face. He was good to people. He was nice to people. He genuinely cared about people. And I know everybody says that. But in his case, it’s true,” Melissa said.

The Rock County Sheriff’s Office said the crash is still under investigation. No charges have been announced for the F350 driver, who was identified only as a 30-year-old man from Marion, Iowa.