SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — "His role was joy," Joshua Hendricks said as he teared up thinking about his son, Jeffrey Thor.
Thor died Tuesday after he was hit by a car in Spokane Valley while out on a walk with his family.
Thor spent a week at Sacred Heart Medical Center, where he fought for his life against brain swelling.
Hendricks said the family is in "tumultuous pain," following his death.
"He was very good at bringing the best out of everybody and bringing joy and smiling at everybody’s face when they came in the door," Hendricks said.
The father shared his plans to be the joy his son was to others. He said that's how he'll carry his legacy with him.
"Biggest thing I'll try to do is replicate the joy, keep that going," Hendricks said. "And just remind myself, my wife, my sons, the things he would do, what he would enjoy."
Hendricks shared Thor's life story was marked by thousands of prayers at the beginning and the end.
"He was here for two and a half years because of prayer," Hendricks said.
Hendricks said Thor was a miracle from the day he was born. He said he was born without a fully-developed esophagus.
As Thor laid in his hospital bed, Hendricks said he received comments and prayers from friends, family and strangers.
He said people told him praying for Thor helped them reconnect with their faiths.
"One person said them and their 13-year-old daughter haven't prayed together in years," Hendricks said. "And this brought them back to prayer, together."
Hendricks said just before he had to say his final goodbye to Thor, his late father provided a moment of peace.
"My father’s name was Jeffrey T. Hendricks, Jeffrey Thomas Hendricks, but Thor was named after him in spirit as Jeffrey Thor Hendricks, Jeffrey T. Hendricks," Hendricks shared. "The day before we had to make some tough decisions, after visiting with Thor, me and my wife were walking out and I could feel my dad say ‘Josh, I got him.’ and that gave me peace. That he’s got him. He’ll be watching over him and taking care of him in the meantime.”
The family is looking back on little moments, appreciating them even more in Thor's absence.
"When he’d want to be held, he would say, ‘Daddy, hold you, Daddy, hold you,’ not understanding the, the ‘Daddy, I want to be held,’ Hendricks explained. "But he’d say ‘Daddy, hold you, Daddy, hold you’ which he did. He held us more than he held him."
Hendricks said if he had one last moment with Thor, he would tell him how much he loved him.
"I'm going to miss him," Hendricks said with tears in his eyes.
Hendricks said him and Thor loved watching Oregon football together, being outside and playing with dinosaurs.
The family is currently finalizing memorial details to honor Thor's life. They are also working with legal to challenge the findings of the Washington State Patrol's investigation of the car accident.
The report said "pedestrians failed to recognize vehicle."
Hendricks said he believes his wife should not be blamed for the accident.
While he does not want to put the teenage driver in jail, he does want some burden to be relieved from his grieving wife.
According to Washington State Patrol, the investigation is still open, and the driver is not facing criminal charges at this time.
District 4 PIO Sergeant Greg Riddell said it will go through collision technical review and detective review prior to closing.
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