Tragedy struck an Oxford family Sunday after a 9-year-old boy was killed after being hit by a vehicle.

According to the Oxford Police Department, at about 4:25 p.m. Sunday, officers were dispatched to the emergency room at Baptist Memorial Hospital-North Mississippi.

Dispatch reported that a young boy, Henry Miller, 9, had been struck by a moving vehicle and was being transported by his parent’s car to the emergency room.

Henry had climbed into the driver’s seat and inadvertently put the car in neutral. As the vehicle began to back down the driveway Henry attempted to exit the vehicle but was unable to escape the wheel’s path. When officers arrived Henry was in critical condition. After an unrelenting effort by the emergency staff, he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the hospital.

His parents, Joel Miller and Cori Benefiel, own The Ravine restaurant in Oxford.

The incident took place on Whippoorwill Lane. There are no other injuries and no charges pending.

“The Oxford Police Department would like to extend our deepest condolences to the Miller family. We ask that everyone please respect their privacy during this time,” stated an OPD press release Monday evening.

Counselors for classmates

Henry attended Della Davidson Elementary School. Superintendent Brian Harvey said counselors will be available Monday after spring break to help his classmates deal with losing their friend.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Miller family,” Harvey said Monday.

Henry’s family posted on the Ravine’s Facebook page today their sorrow over losing their son, with touching words of sympathy shared by others on social media.

“We usually don’t post personal information, but a shining light of ours has been taken from us. Henry Benefiel Miller, our 9-year-old son, passed away yesterday after a tragic car accident,” the family wrote on Facebook. “Many of our friends at Ravine came to know and enjoy Henry over the years. He was a near-constant presence during the early years of the restaurant, whether by throwing toys off the balcony or resting on Cori’s hip during service.”

Visitation for Henry will be at 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Waller Funeral Home. A Memorial Service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at the Oxford-University United Methodist Church.

According to his family, Henry was an avid reader of both fiction and nonfiction books. The family has set up an endowment in Henry’s name to preserve his literary legacy.

Tax deductible donations can be made in the name of The Henry Miller Memorial Fund to the Younger Foundation at P.O. Box 40, Marks, MS, 38646-0040.

You can read Henry’s obituary and complete funeral arrangements here.