Marana vigil honors 11-year-old killed in Gladden Farms crash | Local News

MARANA, Ariz. (KVOA) – A Marana community came together Friday night, shutting down a street to remember an 11-year-old sixth grader who was killed in a crash Thursday morning.

The fatal collision happened in the Gladden Farms neighborhood at the intersection of Hancock Drive and Midfield Road near Tangerine and Interstate 10. Marana Police said the boy was riding across an unmarked crosswalk when a driver hit him.

Well over 100 people gathered at the intersection 15 minutes before the vigil began, and those numbers only grew as law enforcement shut the street down.

A helicopter led a special law enforcement procession through Midfield Road. The same intersection where the boy lost his life became a place for friends, neighbors and community members to stand with his family.

“He’s got the biggest cheesy grin looking down at us now with all this attention,” the boy’s father told the crowd.

Some people at the vigil never had the chance to meet the child, but those who did remember an 11-year-old who was well-liked and who would sometimes wear his glasses upside down. Some of the people who taught him were there well before the vigil began.

“He was really respectful. He liked to help clean and stuff, which you know not a lot of the kids are interested in,” Bethany Sharp, a former employee at Gladden Farms Elementary, said.

The boy’s sixth grade teacher Eva Hartsuck, from Tangerine Farms K-8, told News 4 Tucson this is the worst thing you can experience as a teacher. She said Friday was about being there for the kids and staying strong for them.

“He was silly, making everyone laugh, he was fun, very helpful. He was really good at math, so he was my helper,” Hartsuck said.

The local mother, Dajai Woods, who helped organize Friday night’s vigil did not know the boy or his family but said she witnessed the deadly collision.

“We have so many kids in this community. He was like, he was one of ours,” Woods said. “We’re just here to support the family in whatever they need during this time.”

The sixth grader leaves behind a mom, dad and younger brother.

“This overwhelming support means more than you’ll ever understand,” the boy’s father said.