Boy killed by falling tree in Northland had ‘character beyond his years,’ family says
Vince Kellerman was a bright 5-year-old on the verge of kindergarten and Sunday school at his church, family said. Recently, he’d met future classmates and happily talked to them about playing outside.
On Wednesday last week, a falling tree struck the boy as he was playing along the Line Creek Trail in Kansas City’s Northland, and Kansas City police said he died Saturday after he was taken off life support.
The child was struck along the trail, near the intersection of Northwest 68th Street and Northwest Waukomis Drive and Hopewell Elementary School, where he was set to start school in the fall.
“Vince’s sudden passing has left a void that can never be filled,” the boy’s aunt, Sandy Nguyen, wrote on a GoFundMe page that had raised more than $25,000 for Kellerman’s family as of Tuesday afternoon.
“From the beginning, Vince’s parents, Kathy and James, have given him the most unconditional love and raised him to enjoy exploring the world around him,” Nguyen wrote. “Vince also has a younger brother, Silas, and as a family they made every day an adventure through outdoor activities, traveling, and spending time with loved ones. Vince constantly radiated the love his parents poured into him through his compassion for others.”
The page said that Vince was excited to start kindergarten at Hopewell and Sunday school at the Church of the Holy Martyrs in Kansas City.
“He never met a stranger — only friends he had not yet gotten to know,” Nguyen wrote. “Despite his young age, Vince had a character beyond his years: smart, kind, loving, and truly magnetic. His bright smile and affectionate hugs lit up every room he entered.”
This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 3:53 PM.
