Accident victim in town for family funeral

The 80-year-old man killed by a motorist in Clovis on Saturday was in town to attend the funeral of his brother-in-law, his family said Sunday.

Robert Louis Grimm, of Aurora, Colo., was the brother-in-law of Rex Ormon, of Clovis, whose funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. today. Grimm and his wife, Mary, who is the sister of Ormon’s wife Dorothy, arrived in Clovis around noon Saturday and were staying at the Ormon’s residence at 2721 Ross St., said Patty Stallings, Ormon’s daughter and Grimm’s niece.

Grimm, 80, was struck and killed about 6:45 p.m. Saturday in the 2200 block of North Prince Street.

“We really don’t know what happened,” Stallings said. “(Family members) said he just decided to go for a walk, so they leant him my Dad’s coat and a flashlight. He was just going to walk to the end of the cul-de-sac and back. We don’t know how he got through the end of the cul-de-sac at Ross, which is fenced. We don’t know why he would go (to Prince).”

Stallings said when Grimm didn’t return some members of the family went looking for him. They found the accident scene and heard the victim was an elderly man, which led them to identify him.

Clovis police said no citations have been issued against Ryan Sattler, 20, the driver of the truck that struck Grimm. Police said the accident appeared to be “pedestrian error.”

“That poor boy who hit him, he was really broken up,” Stallings said. “Fortunately, we were able to reach him and my aunt was able to talk to him.”

Grimm’s wife was formerly Mary Frear, of Clovis. She grew up in Clovis and taught school in the city before moving to Denver, Stallings said.

Stallings said her husband, Ted Stallings, flew to Denver on Sunday to bring Grimm’s children to Clovis. Cremation services will be arranged by Muffley Funeral Home.

Sattler could not be reached for comment Sunday.