PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A Valley pastor died after being hit by a car in uptown Phoenix last week, prompting the community to rally support for his three children.
Rodger Loar, 53, was crossing the street in a crosswalk at 7th and Missouri avenues last Monday when a car making a right turn hit him, police said.
Loar, who used a wheelchair, died at the scene. The driver stayed at the scene, but police have not said if they will face charges.
Close friends said it was a daily ritual for Loar to cross the street at the intersection on the way to lunch.
“To go and have coffee and then lunch nearby businesses there they knew him and loved him and looked forward to seeing him every day,” said Margo O’Neill, head of school for Villa Montessori School.
O’Neill described Loar as “intelligent deeply caring, funny and you knew that you mattered whenever he talked to you.”
Loar leaves behind three children. One of them had just graduated from Arizona State University and started a new job the day her father died.
O’Neill was at the pastor’s home with his children when police knocked on the door to deliver the news.
“To see the devastation on those children was heartbreaking they knew he loved them very much and they will miss him tremendously,” O’Neill said.
O’Neill said Loar gave much to others despite challenges with his health. She said her school would not be possible without him. He lost his church during COVID and ensured the building was given to Villa Montessori.
“I think he believes that spiritual faith will help people impacted by him to heal and go on,” O’Neill said.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family.
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