People are helping support the family of the 36-year-old National Grid worker after he was hit and killed by a pickup truck while he was working on a Waltham site.
Roderick Jackson and on-duty Officer Paul Tracey, 58, were killed in the crash, the Middlesex District Attorney said.
“On Wednesday December 6th the world lost an amazing dad, brother, son, boyfriend and friend in a tragic accident,” the GoFundMe read. “Rod wasn’t just a co-worker but more like a brother to all of us in Local 12003.”
The GoFundMe was created to help the family cover funeral expenses.
In 12 hours, the GoFundMe had surpassed its original goal of $10,000. As of 7 a.m. Friday, it had raised nearly $30,000 for the family.
Jackson’s mother and brother were at Peter Simon’s court appearance, who is accused by police of hitting both Jackson and Tracey. They told reporters outside the courtroom they were completely devastated.
“Behind bars he has a life. I don’t have my son. He took our treasure chest. Unforgivable,” his mother Norma Asprilla told WBZ.
His brother called him the “heart of this family.”
“I’ll tell you right now he was a legend. He was the heart of this family, of this entire family. That’s who he was,” Jackson’s brother Manuel Asprilla-Hassan said, the outlet reported.
“Anybody who knows him, the most selfless man ever. He was more than just my brother, he was my father. That’s the heart of this family, that’s what was taken from us.”
Simon, 54, of Woodsville, N.H. pleaded not guilty to the 10 charges he faced Thursday morning in a Waltham District courtroom packed with family members of Tracey and Jackson, dozens of their National Grid coworkers and police officers from Waltham and multiple nearby communities.
Simon’s charges charges included two of manslaughter and several motor vehicle charges, such as unlicensed operation. He was held without bail pending his dangerousness hearing on Dec. 14.
National Grid also remembered Jackson, who had joined the team in early 2021 as a gas operations team technician.
“He was a highly-respected, talented and selfless teammate who worked extremely hard, took on extra duties and had built strong friendships with members on his team,” National Grid shared.
“He was always willing to lend a hand, roll up his sleeves and help a colleague. His loss is deeply felt throughout the company and he will be sorely missed.”
The GoFundMe said Jackson “always had a smile on his face and made it a point to greet everyone when he came into the office each morning.”
“He often spent time joking around and talking about life, his future plans, and the plans he had for buying a house,” it read. “Rod was an ambitious hard worker who was constantly trying to reach his goals to better the lives of his loved ones.”
