An 18-year-old Washington Township man died after he was hit by a train near Chicago Sunday, according to officials.
Tomassino "Tommy" Offer was walking north on Main Street in Wheaton, IL, around 10:15 a.m. Sunday when he approached the Front Street railroad crossing, according to a Metra spokesperson.
Wintnesses told officials that Offer stopped at the crossing to let a westbound Union Pacific freight train pass. He then began crossing the tracks, unaware of a second train coming from the opposite direction when he was fatally struck, according to the Metra spokesperson.
Metra is the train system for the Chicago area.
Offer graduated from Notre Dame Preparatory School (NDPS) in Pontiac in 2026. He had just begun his first semester at Wheaton College where he was studying business and playing baseball.
Wheaton, Illinois, is roughly 25 miles outside of Chicago.
Andrew Guest, Notre Dame Prep's Head of School, said Offer was an outstanding student and extraordinary young man.
"He was loved by his teachers and classmates and cherished by his many friends, including his teammates on our state championship soccer team and his baseball team," Guest said.
NDPS head baseball coach Jason Gendreau also remembered Offer.
"Heaven gained the ultimate angel yesterday. Words could never express the hurt felt from losing this young man," Gendreau said. "Selfless, Caring, Hardworking, Intelligent, talented -- AND RELENTLESS beyond his years! Tomassino...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."
Those close to the Offer family created a GoFundMe page.
"Tomassino Offer's family is devastated by the loss of their oldest child, as his life was taken unexpectedly; in an accident over the weekend," organizers wrote on the page. "Tomassino was an incredibly devout Catholic and student athlete, and his loss is deeply felt by all who knew him."
Patch Editor Lisa Marie Farver contributed to this report
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