Mackinaw community mourns the loss of a 9-year-old athlete

Posted on July 18, 2023

MACKINAW – The Mackinaw community continues to mourn the sudden death of a 9-year-old boy.

Adrian Zehr was killed after a car accident just after 9 p.m. Friday night on Main Street in Mackinaw.

The Peoria County Coroner said Zehr suffered multiple-blunt force trauma injuries after getting hit by a car Friday night.

The young boy was a prominent athlete on multiple teams like the Dee-Mack Warriors, Mackinaw recreation basketball, and Dee-Mack junior football league program.

The JFL of Central Illinois said in a statement online, “He was a hardworking athlete and student, a devoted friend and brother, loved fiercely by his mother and brother, and treasured by his large family and the Mackinaw community as a whole.”

Monday, basketballs and footballs are being placed at his memorial. Zehr previously attended the “Curley Boo Johnson Skills for Life Basketball Academy Camp” here in Peoria.

Former Harlem Globetrotter Curley Johnson said he has fond memories of Zehr at his camp, and for generations, his campers will know the name Adrian Zehr.

“He won the “Hustle Award” in 2022, so we’re going to name the award after him in his honor, sometimes life can be cruel it can punch you in the mouth or kick you dead in the stomach and that’s exactly how I felt when I got the news about Adrian. I’m going to miss him, he’s a good kid, and I’m glad I got to spend some time with him,” said Johnson.

Zehr was preparing to start 4th grade at Dee-Mack Intermediate School.

One local started GoFundMe to raise money for the family and funeral expenses and has already raised more than $30,000.

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