AUBURN - There is a heart-breaking monument at Auburn High School that is tragically designed to evolve to include more stories of teenagers killed in cars driven by intoxicated or reckless drivers.
The Gone4Ever exhibit shows five victims of three fatal automobile crashes between 2004 to 2005. It is in a flexible setup that has traveled week after week to school districts in the region.
The hope at the Auburn Enlarged City School District is to include the stories of two hometown teenagers who died in September from preventable causes.
Twenty 11th- and 12th-graders in a health class were the first in the district asked to help fund raise for the memorial by paying $1 for black rubber wristbands reading “Gone4Ever.” They were asked this week by Auburn police officer Brian “Hutch” Hutchings to help remember his son and to help prevent similar consequences by making responsible decisions.
His son, Timothy Hutchings, 19, died of massive head trauma sustained in an accident in the front yard of 2850 Sand Beach Road, Fleming, Sept. 2. He was found four hours later in the vehicle.
A felony case is now pending against unlicensed driver Nicholas Raymond, 18, of 6206 West Lake Road, Auburn, on the allegation Raymond left Hutchings in the vehicle without reporting the crash.
William Brown Jr., 20, of 27 Evans St., Auburn, has been charged with obtaining the alcohol for the party Raymond was at before leaving to pick up Tim. Ashley Hadden, 18, of 2158 W. Genesee St. Road, Aurelius, has been charged with falsely reporting the crashed vehicle as stolen.
In an accident that occurred two weeks later, Ryan Walker, 19, of Auburn, was killed in a high-speed crash on Benham Road, in Aurelius, Sept. 16. Driver James Darby also died.
Tim and Ryan were just two of more than 5,000 13- to 19-year-olds killed each year because of injuries caused by accidents.
Brian spoke to the class along with school resource officer, Jim Slayton. His wife Wendy did not speak to the class but was an anguished presence.
Brian asked if there were any students who were friends in the class. He asked two students who tentatively identified their friendship if they would leave their friend like his son was left. They both said no.
“I'm sure we're not going to stop kids from making mistakes,” Brian said. “But when you make a mistake, don't make a second mistake. That (second) mistake killed our son.”
Slayton told the class he knew they weren't going to stop drinking, but that he hoped they would make different choices about drinking and driving: call a cab for a drunk friend; grab the keys from intoxicated drivers and don't let go; call if there's an accident, even if multiple calls are made to 911.
Hutchings and Slayton gave a pointed message to emphasize the Gone4Ever's two punches: the grief of loved ones at the utter tragedy of how these teenagers died and the possibility of prison bars clanging behind drivers whose recklessness caused death.
Dozens of pictures of Tim were added to the exhibit. In the commemoration of Ryan, a letter was included from his brother, Justin, a survivor of the accident. Justin promised to finally listen to his brother's nagging about nasty preservatives and to eat better. Justin wrote he missed Ryan bothering him at inconvenient times to spot him lifting weights and the hours Ryan could spend on the beaches of Cape Cod.
“I think what hurts the most is that I wasn't able to hug you and say good-bye before you died,” Justin wrote.
Both Brian and Justin have found some evidence that there is life beyond this one.
Brian told the class that he doesn't agree with people who scoff at the idea of seeing a light when passing away.
When Brian was hit by an 18-year-old drunk driver, he stopped breathing. “It was very peaceful and I said good-bye to my family,” Brian said. But he was revived by the fire department and he began to feel pain. Pictures of an accident that required him to relearn how to walk and talk were passed out to the class.
Justin wrote in his letter that he heard Ryan tell him he loved him and he felt Ryan's hand on his shoulder shortly after Ryan died.
In this painful present, Brian said that he has found good in speaking to several classes this school week. One girl came up to him Wednesday after the class, gave him her thanks and said she was sorry.
Brian said that gestures like that has made his speaking out about his son's death worth it. He plans to keep speaking out.
Staff writer Amaris Elliott-Engel can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or at amaris.elliot-engel@lee.net
The hope at the Auburn Enlarged City School District is to include the stories of two hometown teenagers who died in September from preventable causes.
Twenty 11th- and 12th-graders in a health class were the first in the district asked to help fund raise for the memorial by paying $1 for black rubber wristbands reading “Gone4Ever.” They were asked this week by Auburn police officer Brian “Hutch” Hutchings to help remember his son and to help prevent similar consequences by making responsible decisions.
His son, Timothy Hutchings, 19, died of massive head trauma sustained in an accident in the front yard of 2850 Sand Beach Road, Fleming, Sept. 2. He was found four hours later in the vehicle.
A felony case is now pending against unlicensed driver Nicholas Raymond, 18, of 6206 West Lake Road, Auburn, on the allegation Raymond left Hutchings in the vehicle without reporting the crash.
William Brown Jr., 20, of 27 Evans St., Auburn, has been charged with obtaining the alcohol for the party Raymond was at before leaving to pick up Tim. Ashley Hadden, 18, of 2158 W. Genesee St. Road, Aurelius, has been charged with falsely reporting the crashed vehicle as stolen.
In an accident that occurred two weeks later, Ryan Walker, 19, of Auburn, was killed in a high-speed crash on Benham Road, in Aurelius, Sept. 16. Driver James Darby also died.
Tim and Ryan were just two of more than 5,000 13- to 19-year-olds killed each year because of injuries caused by accidents.
Brian spoke to the class along with school resource officer, Jim Slayton. His wife Wendy did not speak to the class but was an anguished presence.
Brian asked if there were any students who were friends in the class. He asked two students who tentatively identified their friendship if they would leave their friend like his son was left. They both said no.
“I'm sure we're not going to stop kids from making mistakes,” Brian said. “But when you make a mistake, don't make a second mistake. That (second) mistake killed our son.”
Slayton told the class he knew they weren't going to stop drinking, but that he hoped they would make different choices about drinking and driving: call a cab for a drunk friend; grab the keys from intoxicated drivers and don't let go; call if there's an accident, even if multiple calls are made to 911.
Hutchings and Slayton gave a pointed message to emphasize the Gone4Ever's two punches: the grief of loved ones at the utter tragedy of how these teenagers died and the possibility of prison bars clanging behind drivers whose recklessness caused death.
Dozens of pictures of Tim were added to the exhibit. In the commemoration of Ryan, a letter was included from his brother, Justin, a survivor of the accident. Justin promised to finally listen to his brother's nagging about nasty preservatives and to eat better. Justin wrote he missed Ryan bothering him at inconvenient times to spot him lifting weights and the hours Ryan could spend on the beaches of Cape Cod.
“I think what hurts the most is that I wasn't able to hug you and say good-bye before you died,” Justin wrote.
Both Brian and Justin have found some evidence that there is life beyond this one.
Brian told the class that he doesn't agree with people who scoff at the idea of seeing a light when passing away.
When Brian was hit by an 18-year-old drunk driver, he stopped breathing. “It was very peaceful and I said good-bye to my family,” Brian said. But he was revived by the fire department and he began to feel pain. Pictures of an accident that required him to relearn how to walk and talk were passed out to the class.
Justin wrote in his letter that he heard Ryan tell him he loved him and he felt Ryan's hand on his shoulder shortly after Ryan died.
In this painful present, Brian said that he has found good in speaking to several classes this school week. One girl came up to him Wednesday after the class, gave him her thanks and said she was sorry.
Brian said that gestures like that has made his speaking out about his son's death worth it. He plans to keep speaking out.
Staff writer Amaris Elliott-Engel can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or at amaris.elliot-engel@lee.net
The Citizens' Say
There are 5 comment(s)
glad to have moved wrote on Nov 10, 2006 7:46 PM:
New Mom wrote on Nov 10, 2006 2:54 AM:
Mom#2 wrote on Nov 9, 2006 7:57 PM:
DON'T MIND AT ALL, MOM#2 wrote on Nov 9, 2006 4:02 PM:
Long Gone wrote on Nov 9, 2006 2:29 PM: