Bryan, TX (November 8, 2019) – The victim injured in the State Highway 21 crash in Bryan has succumbed to his injuries.
At approximately 6:30 p.m. on November 4, emergency crews responded to the scene of a motor vehicle accident on State Highway 21.
Reports from police indicate that a semi-truck and a 2013 Lexus collided along the 10300 block of West State Highway 21 near the intersection of TX-OSR.
Both William, 81, and Irene Bacak, 80, sustained fatal injuries in the collision and were declared deceased at the scene.
A third victim inside the sedan was rushed to CHI St. Joseph for treatment.
Authorities confirmed that the third victim, 66-year-old Thomas Bacak, succumbed to his injuries while admitted to the hospital.
At this time, the incident remains under investigation.
This is a follow up to an earlier article found here.
We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the families of William, Irene, and Thomas Bacak. Our thoughts are with them at this time.
Patrice Eicher (Taylor) (1971)
I was sad to read that our classmate, Tommy Bacak, was tragically killed in an auto accident in November, 2019. I have known Tommy since we started 1st grade at St Elizabeth School (our birthdays are 2 days apart!), thru graduation from AHS in 1971. He was a fine young man, Catholic as was his entire family, and a member of the CYO-Catholic Youth Organization. Two of his sisters became nuns with the SSND-School Sisters of Notre Dame. Tommy lived in Richmond, TX, and succumbed to injuries from the same car accident that took the lives of his older brother, James William, and James' wife, Irene. I was disturbed by not being able to find any record of services for Tommy, and only this one-line obituary:
"Thomas was born on September 28, 1953 and passed away on Tuesday, November 5, 2019."
This is a link to his brother, James William's obituary - not the same as having your own, but does list the family Bacak members. May they all rest in the peace of Christ, the peace he alone can give.
https://www.memorialoakschapel.com/obituary/James-Bacak
Kathy (Kareemah) Mullen (1971)
Also a classmate of Tommy in the same first grade in St. Elizabeth’s, just in the last month, I had been thinking of Tommy when I was watching documentaries of WW2 that mentioned Czechoslovakia. I remember the nuns informed us in a proud way that Tommy’s family was from Czechoslovakia , which always interested me.
I wondered if I could find any thing on what he might be doing presently, so I googled him only to find the news clippings of the accident with he and his brother, James, and sister in law, Irene, and the one-line obit that also included loving tributes from his son and nephew.
https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/thomas-bacak-obituary?pid=194389902
Oddly, and sadly for the family losing three brothers so close together, another brother of their family, Hank Bacak, had died on October 19 2019, less than three weeks earlier. His obit is also available and gives some family history.
https://www.northdallasfuneralhome.com/obituary/18214/
All apparently fine people who will be missed. May the remaining family find solace in their faith and families.
Patrice Eicher (Taylor) (1971)
Thanks, Kathy. My family on both sides also immigrated from Czechoslovakia, and because of that connection, my parents and Tommy's parents were good friends. I loved reading the Bacak family history on Hank's obituary, and now having read the tributes from his nephew and son on Tommy's brief obit, I am comforted to know that Tommy, indeed, had a full life and is survived by his wife, Yupin, and 3 children: sons, Joe and Jay, and daughter, Jep.
Kathy (Kareemah) Mullen (1971)
I did not know your family came from Czechoslovakia as well. So important how we connect the dots in life, as it brings out the deepest meanings. And I am glad the information was helpful to you. You never know what will help someone reconcile with the loss of others. Even after decades of not being in touch, there seems to be this very deep connection to those we bonded with in our early years.