The mother, father and son all lost their lives in the collision around 7:45 a.m. on Rand Road near Mt. Prospect Road. The crash remains under investigation.
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The victims have been identified to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office as Francisco Javier Flores Perez, 31, Georgina Perez Gomez, 59, and Francisco Flores Rodriguez, 58, of Des Plaines.
RELATED | 3 killed in Mt. Prospect crash
"They were inseparable," said Danfer Flores, a relative of the victims.
The tight-knit Des Plaines family was running routine Sunday morning errands when they were tragically killed before making it to church.
Francisco Flores, his wife Georgina and son Pancho were in a white Honda when the driver of a gold Ford crashed into them as they were leaving Mt. Prospect Plaza, killing them instantly.
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"Last night when I passed by their house and I didn't see the white car," family member Brenda Pano said. "I always see the white car. It's always in the driveway. And I'm no longer going to see that white car or them ever again."
The husband and wife were remembered for their love of others and one another.
"They used to tell each other, 'if you die first, please come get me I don't want to be here by myself; I don't want to live life without you,'" Pano said.
Their son Pancho, a cancer survivor, was remembered for his generosity.
"He always took care of me," his cousin Danfer Flores said. "He always picked me up when I fell. He paid for my tuition when I never even asked."
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Flores said he wished he had asked Pancho to stay over the night before the crash.
"Maybe if he would have just stay," Flores said, breaking down in tears. "If he would have just stayed back, maybe if he would of just stayed back it would have been one less, 'cause he was 30. He was still young!"
One solace for the grieving family was that they were together when they died.
"They never wanted to leave each other and that's why God called them all together," Pano said.
The Flores family is survived by their eldest daughter, who is now trying to raise money so she can bury her parents and brother in Mexico.