WHEATON, IL — Friends, family, teammates and community members are mourning the loss of Tomassino "Tommy" Offer, 18, a Wheaton College student who died when he was hit by a freight train while crossing the railroad tracks at Front Street Sunday morning.
Offer, a freshman baseball player for the Wheaton College Thunder, was remembered as "sincere in all aspects of his life" by the team's head coach, Matt Husted, in a tribute on the Wheaton College Athletics site.
Husted said Offer was "was joyful, but a competitor – all qualities that made him a great teammate."
According to a spokesperson for Metra, a man, whom the DuPage County Coroner has identified as Offer, was walking north on Main Street around 10:15 a.m. Sunday when he stopped at the Front Street railroad crossing to let a westbound Union Pacific freight train pass.
The Metra spokesperson said witnesses reported that Offer began to cross after the westbound train passed and was fatally hit by a freight train heading east.
Offer graduated from Notre Dame Preparatory School (NDPS) in Pontiac, Michigan, in 2026 and had just begun his first semester at Wheaton College.
In a post on Facebook, NDPS shared a statement from Head of School Andrew J. Guest saying that Offer "was an outstanding student and, even more importantly, an extraordinary young man."
Guest continued, "Tomassino had a bright future filled with promise, and he possessed a kind heart that touched those around him."
NDPS head baseball coach Jason Gendreau also took to social media to share his memories about Offer.
Gendreau wrote, "Heaven gained the ultimate angel yesterday. Words could never express the hurt felt from losing this young man! Selfless, Caring, Hardworking, Intelligent, talented -- AND RELENTLESS beyond his years! Tommasino...it was a privilege to be part of your life! You made me a better person, coach and leader just by your presence and the expectations/standards you placed upon yourself."
A memorial mass for Offer was held Monday night at St. Michael Catholic Church in Wheaton. A post about the memorial read, in part, "Please pray for the soul of Tommasino Offer, an 18-year old Wheaton College student, who found a spiritual home here at St. Michael since he arrived in Wheaton in August. After attending mass here last Sunday, he got struck by a train while crossing the tracks in downtown Wheaton. For a short time, Tommy has faithfully worshipped with us usually at the 9 a.m. mass."
is planned for Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. at St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Utica, Michigan.
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