Friends and family remember BGSU student killed in a car crash

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (WTVG) - Friends and family remember 20-year-old Ryan Walker Saturday, during a memorial presented at Bowling Green State University. Walker was a BGSU student who was killed in a tragic car crash caused by a suspected drunk driver on September 4, 2022.

“Every parent thinks the world of their kid, for the most part, but this kid truly was a parent’s dream” said Ryan Walker’s father, David Walker. “Really, he was. No worries about him ever.”

“He was a person that had depth and he sees the beauty in people and he draws them out,” said Walker’s mother, Belinda Walker. “If you don’t think you are, he’s going to make sure that you know that you are.”

Leaders with the university also presented Walker’s parents with a diploma in honor of his time spent at the university before his passing.

“He is the first to get a degree so that is an accomplishment in itself,” said Belinda Walker. “That has brought a lot of sunshine into my life.”

13abc spoke with the driver of the car Walker was in that September night, one of his best friends, Steven Iwanek. He tells us he doesn’t remember much from the wreck but says it will impact him for the rest of his life.

“I was knocked out for it so, I didn’t have to see a lot of things, but I want to make it a point to say people need to be more responsible behind the wheel,” Iwanek said.

As they wait for the completed autopsy and investigation, Walker’s parents are doing everything they can to get the state to crack down on drunk drivers, more than it already does.

“I don’t want Ryan just to be another statistic. He can’t,” said Belinda Walker. “Something has to change.”

As of right now, no charges have been filed against the 42-year-old Toledo man who caused the car crash, but the Walker family tells 13abc they are expecting the investigation to wrap up by the end of this month.

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