WYOMING, MI -- Cliff Fender isn't sure what motivated a plow truck driver to flee after striking and killing his daughter along a Wyoming street.
He's assuming the 21-year-old panicked.
In the aftermath of 26-year-old Chelsea Crawford's death Tuesday, Fender said he knows how she would react if she could tell him.
"She would want nothing more than people to forgive," Fender said.
Family of Crawford are reflecting on her life as they prepare for her funeral Saturday at Resurrection Life Church, 5100 Ivanrest Ave. SW.
They want others to know what made her special to them.
"She had a way of moving anyone and everyone that came into contact with her. There was nothing pretentious or false about Chelsea," Cliff Fender said.
The driver of the plow truck -- a pickup equipped with a V-plow and owned by a local landscaping company -- was arraigned Friday, Jan. 13 on a charge of failure to stop at the scene of an accident when at fault causing death.
Police say Crawford was walking along the edge of 52nd Street east of Byron Center Avenue about 8:45 a.m. Tuesday when she was struck from behind by the truck.
Investigators say Austin J. Hill, 21, then left the scene. Public tips helped police locate the truck later the same day at Ramblewood Apartments near 44th Street and Byron Center Avenue.
Hill was arrested Wednesday as police conducted a search warrant at a Ramblewood apartment.
Crawford was walking Tuesday along 52nd Street to get to a bus stop and then to her job as a seamstress at the JW Marriott hotel in downtown Grand Rapids.
She loved to sew, relatives said, and was in charge of making alterations and repairs to JW Marriott uniforms.
Crawford also loved to read and had amassed a book collection that numbered in the thousands. She particularly enjoyed science fiction and fantasy novels. She had attended Renaissance fairs and made costumes in the past to match the period.
She married Ben Crawford in fall 2014 and they bought a house last summer.
Her father said her life was taking shape.
"She wanted to have a family and be married. She wanted to have a house where she could dress it up and make it her own," he said. "Things were just starting to come together for her."
Crawford grew up in the Wayland area and attended Wayland Union schools. She took some classes at Grand Rapids Community College after high school.
Family members are focusing on fond memories of Crawford since Tuesday.
Her funeral is 10 a.m. Saturday at Resurrection Life Church, with a family visitation at 9 a.m.
Her husband established a GoFundMe page earlier this week to help defray funeral costs.