Parents tearfully recall toddler killed in alleged DUI in Hawthorne

HAWTHORNE, Calif. (KABC) -- A community in Hawthorne is coming together to show their support for a young life cut short.

On Monday, 15-month-old Liam Kowal was taken off life support surrounded by friends and family.

Now, the community is showing an outpouring of love at Liam's parents' gym in Hawthorne, blocks from where the toddler was killed, police say, by a 72-year-old suspected drunk driver.

"An immense tragedy," said Dmitry Gerasimov, organizer of the event. "They're living in a nightmare. It's something they're going to have to live with for the rest of their lives."

The fundraising event featured free classes, along with tacos donated by the Artesia Meat Market, with proceeds going to the Koval family.

Liam was riding in his stroller with his aunt on Saturday evening when the two were hit in a Hawthorne intersection by a suspected drunk driver.

Donna Marie Higgins, 72, is now facing felony hit and run and DUI charges.

His parents say he was a happy, loving, outgoing little boy who loved to share and because of that, they made the difficult decision to donate his organs so that his spirit can live on through another child and another family might be spared their grief.