O'FALLON, Mo. — On September 20, 2014, Destiny Klimaszewski's life changed forever.
Klimaszewski said they were headed to an appointment and were just miles away from their destination when they were hit at 87-miles per hour nearly head on.
In a social media post she said, "That minivan we worked so hard to get now looked like a crumpled-up soda can. My sweet baby who just celebrated his first birthday three months prior was now dead. The same baby, I had just nursed before putting him safely in his rear facing car seat, was gone. My husband, my high school sweetheart, had a fighting chance."
The couple was flown to a hospital, but her husband later succumbed to his injuries and died. The drunk driver also died.
Klimaszewski was the sole survivor.
At 21 years old, Klimaszewski became a widow and she had lost her baby.
"Corey and I were supposed to grow old together. We were supposed to get to see our son, Parker, get his first haircut, walk him into his first day of school and eventually learn who he would become in this big world. Instead, I was reading autopsy reports and making decisions to lay my husband and son peacefully together in a casket so neither of them ever had to be alone like I was. I was simply trying to make sense of it all while trying to survive. My worst nightmare was now my reality," she said.
A year after the accident, Klimaszewski made a Facebook post, which went viral and garnered attention from national news outlets. The post has about 40,000 likes and more than 60,000 shares.
Now, her goal is advocate for stricter laws when it comes to drinking and driving.
This year, Parker should be turning 10 years old on June 23. On the same day, it's also International Widows' Day.
Klimaszewski wanted to do something big for the birthday celebration and do something in their honor.
She came across an organization called Birthday Blessings and she decided to do a toy drive.
The group gives birthday blessings to foster care children all across Missouri, working with their individual county's social workers.
Klimaszewski received more than three Amazon trucks filled with donations at her doorstep in O'Fallon, Missouri.
On Thursday, the day before Parker's birthday, the group had a wrapping event in Troy, Missouri.
They wrapped 120 comforters with sheets and pillowcases, 105 stuffed animals, and around 165 birthday kits to kids.
Since the terrible tragedy, Klimaszewski married again and has two children.
In a Facebook post Thursday, she thanked everyone for their help:
"Thank you for allowing me to teach my kiddos what it means to help others. Ultimately, thank you for allowing Corey and Parker to never be forgotten, spreading #CoreyAndParkersLove and our mission of #DontDrinkAndDrive."
Birthday Blessings is launching a toy drive in hopes to collect a thousand toys in July for birthday gifts.
Here is their Amazon list.
