A high school wrestler in Florida was struck and killed by a driver while out for a morning run, leaving a community behind to grieve his loss and remember his spirit.
As reported by Jacksonville news network WJXT, Ponte Vedra (Fla.) High School wrestler Zander Laurin was hit and killed Wednesday after he was struck by a pickup truck while out on a run before school.
The sophomore was a key member of the school’s wrestling team and was training to attempt the entry test for the U.S. Naval Sea Cadets Corps, according to his mother.
“He would always pick everybody up. That was … his best quality. I mean, he, no matter, what the outcome of the match was, you know, (win) or lose he was right there with his teammates,” Laurin’s wrestling coach, Josean Gonzalez, told WJXT. “We’re really going to miss him.”
While classmates he left behind continue to memorialize Laurin in school, one of his friends has already been moved to help remember him outside school as well; per WJXT, a candlelight vigil will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Mickler’s Landing Beach Park in Ponte Vedra.