''You know that scene in 'It's a Wonderful Life' at the end of the movie, where Jimmy Stewart, he's in trouble and the tax collector and the police, they're all there at his house?" Jamie Ryan asked.

''And then the whole community shows up and they dump money into this basket," Ryan added. ''I can't help but think of that scene when I open up the envelopes."

Ryan, 42, of Clarksville, is helping to organize a charity golf tournament in memory of his nephew, Kevin Ryan, an Atholton High School graduate.

The envelopes beginning to trickle in hold donations and registration fees for the tournament, which is scheduled for May 28 at the University of Maryland Golf Course, in College Park.

Proceeds from the event will go toward funding a scholarship, Kevin Ryan's Gift, at Towson University.

Though the tournament sold out last week, donations are still being accepted to fund the scholarships, Ryan said.

Kevin Ryan was an 18-year-old freshman at Towson University majoring in finance when he was struck by a 2002 Subaru sedan while walking home to his dorm room at about 2 a.m. Oct. 12, 2007, according the Baltimore County Police Department.

Matthew David Miller, 25, of Parkville, whom police identified as the driver of the Subaru, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, and hit-and-run.

Miller is scheduled to appear in Baltimore County Circuit Court on July 17. David Irwin, Miller's attorney, said May 13 that his client was offered a plea bargain and will most likely accept it.

Early in the morning on Oct. 13, Jamie Ryan said he got a call from his eldest brother, Charlie, Kevin's father, that something terrible had happened and that he needed to come to the hospital.

Ryan stopped to pick up another brother, Tim, at River Hill High School, where he works as a teacher. Then he stopped by his parents' home in Ellicott City and together they made the somber trek up to Sinai Hospital, where Kevin had been rushed from the accident scene.

Throughout that difficult day, extended family members all convened at the hospital to lend their support to Kevin's family. Charlie Ryan was already thinking about how to keep his son's memory alive.

''My brother knew right away, when we knew that Kevin wasn't going to make it, he knew that he wanted to start a scholarship for kids Kevin's age," Jamie Ryan said.

It was at the hospital that Kevin's mother and father also found out for the first time that their son was an organ donor, Jamie Ryan said.

''They didn't know," said Jamie Ryan. ''When the police officer brought his wallet, that's when they found out that Kevin was a donor."

Although Jamie Ryan describes the organ donor process as being a painful and prolonged agony for the family, eight recipients were found who were in dire need of transplants.

''You had a sense that his heart, liver, kidney, his cornea, were going to live on," Ryan said.

The family recently received a handwritten, two-page letter from the patient who received the gift of Kevin's heart. A young father with severe heart disease, he wrote movingly about the impact that the transplant has had on his life.

''We were struck by the similarities," said Ryan, after reading the letter. ''He loves the beach and the outdoors and was a wrestling coach. Kevin was a wrestler and loved the beach and the outdoors."

Jamie Ryan remembers his nephew as a fun-loving boy who had a special connection to those much younger and much older than himself. He exhibited an entrepreneurial streak from early on, cutting lawns and shoveling driveways to earn some extra spending money.

''I mean, there's not a lot of kids who read The Wall Street Journal," Ryan said. ''He loved to discuss politics with his dad."

Focus on a positive goal

Organizing the golf tournament has helped the grieving extended family focus on a positive goal seven months after Kevin's death.

Ryan noted that the effort has brought them even closer together.

''We were already a tight-knit family, but we've become closer; we communicate with each other more," he said.

When fully funded, Kevin Ryan's Gift Scholarship Fund will bestow a $1,000 scholarship yearly to two incoming Towson University freshmen.

Kevin Ryan's parents, Charlie and Angela Ryan, said in November that the scholarships will be awarded to students with a financial need and who had been involved in Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts. Kevin Ryan was involved in Boy Scouts, his father said.

For more information on the scholarship fund and the May 28 golf tournament, go to www.kevinryansgift.org.

Sarah Daniels contributed to this story.

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