A funeral is scheduled for Tuesday morning for a Round Lake father and his daughter, who were killed earlier in March when their small plane crashed in Florida.
A funeral mass will be held at 10 a.m. at St. Bede Church in Ingleside.
More than 400 friends, neighbors, and family members gathered Sunday at a candlelight vigil in the northern suburb to remember 15-year-old Katherine Bronken and her father Jeffrey Bronken.
On March 22, Katherine Bronken and her father were on their way to Florida for a spring break getaway. Katherine brought along her softball teammate, Keyana Linbo, who could barely contain her excitement. “T-24 hours=paradise,” Keyana wrote on Twitter earlier in the week.
But their journey ended in disaster about eight miles short of their destination, the St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport, when their plane crashed about 4 a.m. in Clearwater, killing Katherine’s 53-year-old father. The girls, both 15, were rushed to an area hospital, authorities said at the time.
Katherine Bronken died Wednesdayafternoon as a result of the injuries she suffered during the crash, Pinellas County Sgt. David DiSano told the Chicago Sun-Times.
Linbo remained hospitalized in “stable” condition.
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“It’s hard to fathom, everybody is still in shock,” said Round Lake resident and family friend Ken Hoxie. “It’s a big loss to this neighborhood.”
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the crash.
