DALLAS (CNN) – A community is grieving after a man fell from a roof while hanging Christmas lights on Saturday.
“It was a freak accident,” Alisha Flick said.
Felipe Gallegos was putting lights on the roof of his home Saturday night. Flick, Gallegos’ wife, and their 17-year-old son were in the car in the front.
“We heard a loud noise and I got out and went over to the side of the house, and he was laying on the concrete, saying ‘help me, help me.'”
Gallegos was taken to the hospital with a skull fracture and brain bleed.
“My son kept saying, dad if it hurts just squeeze my hand. And he squeezed my son’s hand, and then all of a sudden he quit breathing.”
He was rushed into emergency surgery but didn’t survive.
Now his wife and son are trying to make sense of life without him.
“I think that’s the hardest part for me, is seeing him struggle with it.”
Together, the family ran a business washing windows during the year and hanging Christmas lights in the winter.
On top of his work, Flick says Gallegos went above and beyond for his family and friends.
“It didn’t matter what time or where he was always there to help somebody.”
That kindness is now being returned.
The community has raised more than $40,000 for the family in just two days.
Flick says Gallegos did promise her, if something ever happened to him, they’d be okay.
“With everybody whos reached out and all the support we’ve gotten, I just tell myself he was right, we’re going to be ok. Everything is going to work out,” Flick said.
The Flick family does plan to continue the window washing side of the business but they do not think they can hang Christmas lights anymore.
