Holtville High School’s Boykin-Chapman Field is only a mile and half from where a single-car crash took the life of Bradyn White Thursday.
Just over 24 hours after the wreck a community of friends and family gathered at the football field to remember their friend. All were wondering what the future holds without the 14-year-old Holtville High School student.
“I can’t believe what happened [Thursday],” Camden Williamson said. “I don’t know what I will do without him. It is kind of hard.”
PHOTOS: Vigil for Bradyn White
The Gathering Place Pastor D.J. Stinard was there Friday morning as parents prayed in front of Holtville High School for their children. He was on the field Friday night as the community mourned and remembered White.
“We can not turn our heads to this,” Stinard said. “There are tons of emotions going on. There are a lot of crushed spirits here. It is OK to cry. It is OK to talk to each other about it. It is OK to love on each other.”
Williamson said he and White were pretty much inseparable no matter what was going on.
“As soon as he came out of the womb, we were like two peas in a pod,” Williamson said. “We did everything together. We got in so much trouble together. We were always flipping the four wheelers or sinking something. We were like brothers.”
Cousin Abby Blackwell said White was always himself but always supportive of others.
“He was always there when you needed a shoulder to cry on,” Blackwell said. “He never judged people. He was always there for me.”
Isabella Hams called White a great friend and said he never met a stranger.
“He made the room light up when he walked in,” Hams said. “He was the life of the party. He was always there for me. I have so many memories with him. He would make you laugh til you cried.”
Others recalled how he would make deals to cut grass trying to put a “$20” in his pocket. Some remembered White’s dirt bike racing.
“He had a lot of friends,” Williamson said. “Everybody loved him. He was a really funny person. I can not tell you one time when the boy was not joking.”
Blackwell remembers their inside joke.
“I’ll never forget the time I saw Brayden and he was like, ‘Caleb is my favorite cousin.’ That is my little brother,” Blackwell said. “I would always mess with him and be like that’s ‘OK, [you’re] my least favorite cousin.’ I will miss saying that to him because he was a really good person.”
Holtville High School Quarterback Club president Kevin Chavis said everyone might not have known White but he was Holtville through and through. Chavis said he, like everyone else in Holtville, will help the family.
“He is one of our kids,” Chavis said. “We have all suffered a loss in the community. We all grieve with the parents, family and friends. Everybody here tonight is carrying the burden with you all.”
