When the children of Donna Dutter lost their mother in a tragic car accident in November 2016, they lost the center of their family.
Dutter was killed when her car collided with a dump truck at the intersection of County Highway U, and County Highway EE near the Brown and Outagamie County border.
Now, her family is asking whether changes to the intersection could prevent another tragedy.
Photos can only capture so much of a woman who loved ones say was full of life.
"Fun lady-78 years old [and] you'd never guess it," says daughter Jamie Dutter, sitting next to a collection of photos of her mother. "Had you been able to meet her, you would've guessed 60's."
Jamie Dutter and her three siblings may live states apart, but growing up in Menasha made them an especially close crew.
"Yeah, and I think that's what has gotten us through all of this," adds Dutter.
Thirteen years ago, when their dad passed away suddenly, she says Donna became the heart of the family.
"So, Mom became the center of all of it," says Dutter, "and held all of us together."
Now, mixed within countless memories of happiness, for Jamie, another memory stands out clearly.
"The accident happened at 1:57 [pm]. I had flown out of Green Bay at two o'clock [pm]," recalls Dutter vividly. "My brother had left for Italy out of the Appleton airport."
According to the Hobart-Lawrence Police, on November 4th Dutter was pulling out from a stop sign at County Highway U, and collided with a dump truck heading west on County Highway EE.
Both Dutter, and friend Russell Tritt, died at the scene. The truck did not have a stop sign.
"It's a wide-open intersection. It's got two stop signs," describes Lt. Dan Van Landen, of the Hobart-Lawrence Police Dept. "Both streets are 55 mile-an-hour speed zones, and, as we all know, not everyone always goes 55."
"That intersection itself is so completely wide open," adds Dutter.
Since the tragic accident, Dutter says she's returned to this sight on more than one occasion in search of closure, and answers: 'how did this happen?' 'could it have been prevented?'--questions she says still haunt her.
"That's been another rough piece for us," explains Dutter. "We still have the questions, [and] we have no closure."
But Dutter isn't sitting and waiting. Instead, the family hopes to use memorial funds to help make a change at the intersection.
"Even if it's putting a flashing light out there, or going down the [route] of finding how you get rumble strips put in," says Dutter, "anything."
But making changes to a county highway can depend on several factors, including the number of accidents taking place.
Since 2010, Hobart-Lawrence Police say 16 accidents have occurred at the intersection--10 of which involved hitting a deer, or turkey.
Three have been one-car rollovers, one involving drunk driving.
The final three police say were drivers failing to yield at the County U stop sign, resulting in three deaths in the past seven years.
Change can take time, which is why police remind drivers to always be alert.
"Drive the speed limit, stop for the stop sign, make a complete stop, look both ways, and proceed cautiously," lists Van Landen.
But for the children of Donna Dutter, it's change worth fighting for.
"What can we do to make a difference," says Dutter, "to possibly save another family from going through the tragedy?"
Hobart-Lawrence Police say the investigation into the crash is in an "open" status.
They're waiting for the reconstruction report which is being handled by the Brown County Sheriff's Department.
