Vic family mourns teen road victim THE grief-stricken family of a 16-year-old Victorian boy killed when a car smashed into a tree last year say they are left grappling as to why he had to die. As the Christmas period approaches, the Ocean Grove family has urged drivers to respect the lives of others, never speed or drink drive. Rory McCaffrey was in the back seat of a car when the 17-year-old unlicensed driver lost control on a gravel road and struck a tree on the Bellarine Peninsula, southwest of Melbourne. The car ploughed through a fence, coming to a stop in a paddock early in the morning on December 29. Both the driver and other passenger, also 17, car escaped uninjured. Police believe speed was a factor in the death. Rory's mother Fiona Reidy says the loss of her son continues to afflict her family. "We are left grappling as to why Rory had to die that night and how we can continue to live our lives without him with his memory," Ms Reidy said on Monday. The impact of losing Rory has been profound on our family. It is not a loss we will ever get over. Ms Reidy said Christmas was especially difficult for the family as it marked the anniversary of Rory's death. "Our lives are fractured, no matter how brave the masks are that we put on," she said. Ms Reidy said the Traffic Accident Commission (TAC) and authorities need to continue with their road safety messaging and focus on the causes that underlie drivers' risk-taking behaviour. An exhibit at the State Library in Melbourne has 209 gifts displayed to show the number of lives lost on Victorian roads this year.