LEESBURG, Fla. — A community is mourning the loss of a Leesburg family killed by a suspected drunken driver Friday night in St. Petersburg.
Robert “Sam” Getter, 76, his wife Karen Getter, 73, and their son Samuel “Sam” Getter, 52, died after a drunken driver struck their pickup truck, causing it to flip off a bridge into Tampa Bay, troopers said.
Friends told Channel 9 the Getter family was beloved by its community.
Ray and Janet Trudeau, who befriended the Getters 10 years ago, spent Sunday notifying others of the unimaginable news that their friends were gone.
“You can lose one person and it's terrible,” Janet Trudeau said. “But to lose a whole family all at one time, it's just awful.”
Ray Trueau is a member of the Lake County Shrine Club. Both the father and the son were Trudeau’s fellow Shriners.
%
%
“He wasn't here for self,” Ray Trudeau said of the senior Getter. “He was here for service and principle, and that's what he did.”
The senior Sam Getter was responsible for organizing the club’s weekly bingo night. Club President Lee Frazier said they’ll continue that tradition Monday.
“We felt that Sam would want it to go on and he would not want us to shut down,” Frazier said. “We’re doing it in his honor, actually.”
The couple leave behind two adult daughters, one of whom they were on the way to visit in St. Petersburg when they and their son were killed.
“There’s a lot of heavy hearts around here today,” Frazier said. “Sam was one of those guys that was almost irreplaceable, and he will be sorely missed.”
Frazier’s wife, Donna, said the Getters were always eager to serve anyone in need.
“Sam and Karen Getter were involved in everything that they could be involved in,” Donna Frazier said. “Sam was one of those that would get everybody together, a very fine man. And Karen was really a sweet person. They were wonderful, wonderful people.”
Donna Frazier said one of the couple’s daughters returned from England Saturday, a day after the tragic crash.
“This happened before she got home, so she did not get to see them,” Donna Frazier said. “They will be missed 100 percent, believe me, ‘cause he done so much and so she did she.”
Previous story: FHP: Drunken driver causes Leesburg family to flip into Tampa Bay
Cox Media Group
