11-year-old killed by Jeep in Des Plaines

A makeshift tree swing hung by purple rope where young Alexis Porreca loved to spend her girlhood summer time swayed gently in the breeze in the backyard of her Des Plaines home Wednesday, a day after the girl lost her life in a tragic accident.

Eleven-year-old Porreca, known as Lexi, was hit and killed while walking just steps behind her father as he carried her 3-year-old twin brother and sister safely across the bustling four-lane River Road on their return home after feeding ducks and geese along the edge of the Des Plaines River, police said.

A 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee traveling in the right lane of southbound River Road at Oakwood Avenue near downtown struck her around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Des Plaines Deputy Chief Rich Rozkuszka said.

She was holding her father's arm as he carried the twins and lugged some small bicycles, but apparently broke free in the hurried moment, police said.

Porreca was pronounced dead at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, officials said.

"(Her father) had made it to the curb and he had lost track of her," Rozkuszka said. "It's just an unfortunate accident, period."

Alexis' father, Anthony, was distraught Wednesday as he talked about his daughter and the accident that claimed her life.

"God took one of the best people I've ever met, and she was my best friend," Anthony Porreca said through tears. "She never hurt anybody. She never said anything mean to anybody."

The Jeep's driver, Michael Brindisi, 37, of Chicago was cited for failure to yield to a pedestrian. Police have no reason to believe he had exceeded the 35 mph speed limit along River Road.

But some residents complained Wednesday that drivers do tend to exceed the speed limit there.

"I do know that traffic in this area is a real concern. People need to slow down," said Jan Rashid, a principal at Central Elementary School, 1526 Thacker Ave., where Lexi attended fifth grade until summer break.

There is no pedestrian crosswalk at the T-intersection. Police say there's not enough foot traffic at the Oakwood intersection to warrant a pedestrian crossing. The nearest traffic lights are about four blocks away at intersections with Miner Street and Algonquin Road.

A trip to the riverfront, just 500 feet from the Porreca home, had become a ritual that included bringing stale bread to toss to the birds.

"The kids would ask him to go over to the river," Rozkuszka said. "It was a time for Dad and the kids together."

Porreca said he was struggling with guilt over his daughter's death.

"She was laying in my arms and dying in the street," Porreca said. "I am still blaming myself, and everyone around me says, 'Don't blame yourself.' But I do because that's the kind of person I am."

Porreca said his wife, Candi, was "beside herself" and that they both faced a difficult road ahead.

"I don't know how I'm going to get through without my Lexi Lulu," he said. "Life doesn't stop, but it sure gets difficult."

Anthony and Candi Porreca had moved to the Des Plaines two-flat last August from another suburb farther north, neighbors said.

Jason Slattengren, 24, the family's upstairs neighbor, recalls often seeing the girl swing in the backyard and spotting her twin siblings playing in the sandbox. They loved the outdoors, he said.

Her father, a construction worker and carpenter who was fixing up their first-floor apartment, would spend time with the children, and her mother studied at cooking school, Slattengren said.

"He was always around the kids," he said.

Porreca, who would have turned 12 on Aug. 4, had just completed the fifth grade. The vivacious girl made an indelible impression at Central in just her first year. News of her death during the summer break has devastated the Central community. Parents and teachers were notified by phone of her death Wednesday. Counselors are available by phone at the school if parents want help in how to talk to their children.

In May, the girl with shoulder-length brown hair belted out "Tomorrow" from the musical "Annie" for Central's talent show.

"I can just see her standing on stage and singing, 'The sun will come out tomorrow,'" Rashid said. "She just did a wonderful job."

Teacher Mary Fink taught Porreca in a combination fourth- and fifth-grade class.

When she won a part in the Christian Youth Theater production of "Aladdin" last fall, Fink brought the class to the performance at the Prairie Lakes Community Center in Des Plaines.

Fink said the girl's creative writing stood out and she gave an outstanding speech on the environment and global warming when students were asked to report on a topic that interested them.

"It was just the brightness and happiness that she brought to class every day for each of us," Fink said.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

Daily Herald staff writers Lee Filas and Jameel Naqvi contributed to this report.