DENHAM SPRINGS - Police have identified a man who was killed when he was hit by a car outside of a local restaurant. 

Thomas Sapp, 53, of Bogalusa, died when a car hit him outside of Yellow Brick House in Denham Springs. 

Just minutes before his death, Sapp had walked into the restaurant, where he received a hot meal from the owners. 

Owners Chad Matrana and his wife Kimberly James said this was the first time seeing the man. Just like they did for many others, they gave him a plate when he needed help.

"Our manager sat with him and spoke with him for a little while. We were making his plate, and all we knew at this point was that his name was Thomas," Matrana said.

Matrana and James told WBRZ they would be covering Sapp's funeral expenses.

WBRZ also spoke with the family of Sapp, who said he was in the care of a rehabilitation hospital in Baton Rouge. The family only said they found out about his death through a phone call from the Livingston Parish Coroner's office and found out the restaurant was willing to cover funeral costs through WBRZ’s story.

Kathy Blackmon, Sapp’s sister, said the facility did not notify of not only Sapp missing from there.

“We've lost our brother. You know, he's the baby. We are not supposed to, he was supposed to be burying us,” Blackmon said

Blackmon said that this incident has left her family with a lot of questions.

“Why was he put in a group home when he was supposed to be in a facility that is locked down?", Blackmon said.

His family said the reason he was in care was that Sapp had an aneurysm a while back, and he also had dementia and tended to wander off, saying they are glad he wandered into the Yellow Brick house. 

“They were the last person to talk to him. He loved to talk, and he never met a stranger,” Blackmon said.

The family described Sapp as a kind guy who would give someone the shirt off of his back, and they said the restaurant owners are the same way.

“We didn’t know what we were going to do and this place here is God sent. And all the donations and whatever we are going to get, I want to give it back to this place,” Blackmon said.

One of Yellow Brick House's owners, Chad Matrana, says said he plans to open a food cabinet called Thomas’s Pantry in honor of Sapp next year.