Fundraiser held for young woman run over by hit-run driver

OCEAN BEACH (CNS) – A total of $10,000 was raised at an Ocean Beach pizza place’s fundraiser to support the young woman bicyclist who run over by a hit-and-run driver three weeks ago, friends and family said Sunday.

The nearby Pizza Port, at 1956 Bacon St. in OB, was where Conner worked before she was hit, and 20 percent of sales Saturday are to be donated to defray her medical expenses. There was also a silent auction.

An online fundraiser supporting Conner’s rehabilitation has also raised $28,468 to date.

On Oct. 12, Conner, 23, was riding her bicycle home after 1 a.m. when she was struck by a truck near the intersection of West Point Loma and Sunset Cliffs boulevards by a hit-and-run vehicle, whose driver remains at-large.

She was hospitalized and has had multiple surgeries since to relieve pressure on her brain at UC San Diego Medical Center. She has shown some signs of recovery after two surgeries and a tracheotomy.

“The real goal is to get her better so she can try and make it back in time for an AIDS awareness ride she was planning to go on next year,” Conner’s father, Mark Conner, said at the fundraiser, reported San Diego 6 on its website.

Conner’s friends have set up a Facebook page, Praying for You, Katie Leigh.

The incident remains under investigation. Police are hoping someone with information about the truck involved will come forward.

More information, and a donation link, is at www.giveforward.com .