By Jason Wesseldyk
Sports Editor
A hit-and-run accident in Cooper Township on Thursday, July 4, claimed the life of a bicyclist.
The accident happened at approximately 11 p.m. at North Riverview Drive and East B Avenue in Cooper Township. The victim, a 38-year-old man, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Although the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office didn’t initially release the name of victim, family members later identified him as Plainwell resident Justin Alan Lambert.
Brother John Lambert organized a GoFundMe effort, which had raised $3,230 of its $7,500 goal as of Monday, July 8.
“Justin was the life of the party,” John Lambert wrote on the GoFundMe page. “Everyone that knew him would have been smiling and laughing with him at any occasion. He was such a caring and giving person and would have given you the shirt off his back if you needed it. There is a hole in everyone without him here.”
Police are still investigating the accident and looking for information that could identify the driver who struck Justin Lambert. Authorities believe the vehicle involved was a 1998 to 2004 model year Ford pickup truck.
Anyone with information that could assist in the investigation are asked to call the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office at (269) 383-8748 or Silent Observer at (269) 343-2100 or www.kalamazoosilentobserver.com.
The GoFundMe page for Justin Lambert can be found at www.gofundme.com/f/rip-justin-alan-lambert.
