WEST SENECA, NY (WKBW) -- 29 year old Justin Buchholtz was hit by a car during a late evening walk Monday night on Transit Road near Clinton Street in West Seneca. He was taken to the hospital with serious body and head injuries. His wife Christen says she was by his side for hours before he died late Tuesday morning. "Just sat there and talked to him and held his hand and was just there, even though I knew he wasn't, I just couldn't let go," Christen Buchholtz said.
The two got married nearly a year ago and were expecting their first child together. The couple just announcing the news Monday to loved ones. Now Christen says the unthinkable has happened. "Not at 29, not being married a year. It was never even a thought, like we never talked about our funerals or our deaths," Christen said. "We actually just talked {Monday} evening about what we're going to be like when we're 50."
Justin Buchholtz grew up in Cheektowaga and graduated from West Seneca East High School in 1999. He was in the U.S. Marines and deployed to Iraq for four years, returning to the states in 2005. "He was a great man and loved his family. We never fought, we never argued," Christen Buchholtz said. "When you find the one...I just feel like he's here walking beside me, so that I can get through this."
A wake will be held on Friday and funeral services on Saturday, which would've been the couple's nine month wedding anniversary. Buchholtz also leaves behind a seven year old daughter and a four year old step daughter. His mother, June, lives in Cheektowaga, and his older brother Rich also lives in the area.
Police continue to investigate the accident and say they haven't ruled out snowy roads and sidewalks blocked with snow, as possible factors.
