‘Molly Mullens Mile’ named to honor 9-year-old lost in crash
Nine-year-old Molly Mullens, a third grader at University Park Elementary School, was a joyful little girl who was full of questions and had never met a stranger. She had a deep love for animals, and especially her family’s dog, Ally.
Molly’s death in a car crash on March 16, 2024, left a sorrow that devastated her family.
Eighteen months later, the Mullens have channeled their grief into positive change. They are working to make highways safer, both to honor their daughter and to spare other families from experiencing losses like theirs.
“Everybody on the road is somebody’s child, somebody’s joy, and somebody’s Molly,” Molly’s mother, Marissa, said in testimony before the Texas Senate Committee on Transportation. “Every driver, every passenger, has somebody waiting for them to come home.”
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The Mullens were returning from spring break in Colorado when the driver of a minivan on a curved stretch of U.S. Highway 287 lost control, crossed a grassy median and cable barrier, and collided with their vehicle head-on.
In trying to understand how the wreck happened, the Mullens learned that the barrier on that stretch of highway near Oklaunion hadn’t even been damaged in the accident. It was below road level in a ravine.
Their crash was far from the first to occur on that section of road. Between 2020 and 2024, there had been 78 crossover collisions in the same spot, including more than a half-dozen fatalities.
The Mullens concluded during a call with State Rep. Morgan Meyer and the Texas Department of Transportation that the cable barrier needed to be replaced. The Department of Transportation recommended concrete, and within months the change had been made.
“(E)very day that passed without action was another day at risk,” Meyer said. “We owed it to Molly, and to every driver on that road, to make it safer.”
Now, the Mullens are working to identify wreck hot spots throughout the country, and to help ensure improvements are made to prevent collisions.
“I feel this true calling to make change happen,” Marissa said. “I think sometimes it’s unfortunate that it has to be something as tragic as losing Molly to see this change happen, but I also know that I don’t want someone else to have to endure the loss that we did.”
On Sept. 1, the stretch of road where the family’s collision occurred was designated “The Molly Mullens Mile,” thanks to the passage of House Bill 2457, which was co-sponsored by Rep. Meyer.
“Renaming that mile the ‘Molly Mullens Mile’ is more than a sign on the highway, it’s a promise,” Meyer said. “It’s a daily reminder that behind every statistic is a precious life, a family forever changed. My hope is that every driver who sees Molly’s name will slow down, pay attention, and remember that safety on our roads is not something to take for granted.”
Marissa said she would love for signs with the designation to be pink, the joyful color that the Mullens painted Molly’s room when they found out that they were having a girl.
The Mullens family is continuing to honor their daughter by fostering dogs through Doodle Rock Rescue, a project that Molly would have loved. They hope to start a nonprofit to encourage those who have suffered loss to find healing through fostering dogs.
Marissa said she takes comfort in knowing that Molly has not been forgotten.
“Don’t be afraid to say the child’s name. Don’t be afraid to ask about them,” she advised those seeking to support families who have lost children. “We want to hear their name. That’s just so important.”
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