Brandon Grimes, 26, has been named by his family as the British man killed in a hit and run while on holiday in Florida
An individual dressed in a red t-shirt and blue shorts is seated at a wooden bench in an outdoor setting, with a black bag across their chest. The backdrop features a brick wall and additional wooden benches.
Brandon Grimes was a big Liverpool fan and FA referee
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The young man killed in a hit-and-run in Florida has been named as 26 year old Brandon Grimes, who have launched an appeal to fund his repatriation back to the UK.
Brandon, an FA referee and a big Liverpool FC fan, lost his life last week after a vehicle struck him and fled the scene on Friday (September 25). He had been on holiday in America, according to his family and partner, reports Chronicle Live.
His loved ones issued a heartfelt tribute to the football referee in a bid to raise funds to bring his body home. It said: "It is with a broken heart that we share the passing of our beloved, beautiful, cherished boy Brandon.
"He was tragically taken from us on the 25th of September at the age of only 26. Brandon is deeply loved by us all and will be missed beyond words, and our lives will never be the same without him. Brandon was a gentle, bright, funny, and wonderful soul who brought so much light, love, and joy to everyone who knew him, he truly was the life and soul of the party.
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Brandon Grimes passed away after the incident
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"Our family is completely devastated, and the pain of losing him this way is something no family should ever have to bear. Our lives have been shattered, and we are completely lost without him."
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Given the circumstances of the incident and the fact it occurred on American soil, all those involved, including Brandon's partner David Jackson, are desperately attempting to piece together what happened, with very little information being passed on to them, or to UK authorities, by their American counterparts.
David, 41, said: "We have a lot more questions than we do answers at the moment, we don't fully know what happened, or why, it just doesn't make any sense. We are trying to get all of the information and get justice for him, while his entire family are grieving at the same time.
"Looking back, it was clear that something wasn't right, he was trying to ring me and his friend Tom who he was there with, and I got back just 15 minutes later, but I have since found out that he was already gone by then. We are all absolutely devastated, and the most frustrating part is that we don't know the whole story."
Speaking about Brandon as an individual, and their bond together, David went on: "He was a referee for the FA, and he loved football, Liverpool FC and England especially. We had only been together since February, but we were making a lot of plans, and the future we were talking about won't happen now.
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His family have now started a GoFundMe after his death
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"He has a huge family who have all been destroyed by this, with loads of siblings, and he loved them, his nieces, nana and grandad, and mam and step-dad so much. We are desperate to bring him back, and we are trying to find an international funeral director to help, but the lack of communication we have had from American makes this very difficult."
David and the family have created a GoFundMe page to assist with the costs of bringing Brandon home, which had raised £9,215 at the time of writing. The page has a £16,000 fundraising target, which David describes as a rough estimate of the total expenditure, with any additional funds going towards his funeral - you can visit it by clicking here.
He added: "The financial costs of bringing someone home can be overwhelming, and we want to ensure our Brandon gets the journey home he deserves. If you are in a position to donate, no matter how small, we are endlessly grateful, and if you can't donate, simply sharing this page, keeping Brandon in your thoughts, and helping us fight for him means more to us than words can say."