North East, Md.
Authorities in Maryland say troopers helped a family over Christmas after their parents died in a crash.
According to Maryland State Police, troopers Matthew Hughes and Samuel Rogers raised nearly $5,000 in two weeks to purchase Christmas presents and gift cards for the Zeimer family.
Authorities said the Zeimer children, ages 17, 13 and 6, lost their parents, Jessica and Nicholas Zeimer, in a car crash while the couple was returning home after celebrating their wedding anniversary in November 2022.
Maryland police said the couple died after being struck by another vehicle that was traveling at a high rate of speed on Pulaski Highway.
Days after the deadly collision, Hughes and Rogers reportedly began a project to help the children with their first Christmas without their parents.
Maryland police said the troopers began a fundraiser that allowed them to finish the children’s Christmas lists.
Authorities said Hughes and Rogers partnered with the Ohio State Patrol to have the gifts delivered to the youngest children who moved to Ohio to live with relatives. The team then gave funds to the eldest child who remained in Maryland to complete her senior year of high school.
The crash team with the Maryland State Police said three people ended up dying in the November crash that remains under investigation.