The parents of Binghamton High School student Harper Stantz are thanking everyone who helped them after their daughter was struck by a vehicle last March. She died two days later.

Six month after Harper's death, Marty and Patty Stantz appeared on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program Friday morning. They expressed appreciation for the support they've received from friends and others in the community.

The bench in memory of Harper Stantz was placed in Recreation Park on September 13, 2019. Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News
The bench in memory of Harper Stantz was placed in Recreation Park on September 13, 2019. Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News
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A special memorial bench honoring Harper was installed near the Recreation Park just a few hours earlier. Harper and her friend Britney Laserinko had finished playing tennis in the park minutes before they were hit by a Jeep as they walked on the sidewalk on Beethoven Street.

Patty Stantz said she was the first person to sit on the bench after city workers attached it to a concrete pad.

During the conversation, Harper's parents expressed concern for the family of the driver who was operating the vehicle that struck their daughter and their friend.

The Harpursville man was impaired by heroin at the time. He was sentenced to five to fifteen years in prison after he pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide.

LISTEN to Marty and Patty Stantz discuss what's happened since March, when their daughter and her best friend were struck by a vehicle on Binghamton's West Side.

Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com

For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

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