LENOIR, N.C. — On Friday, Hibriten High School honored the memory of Wesley Oliver, 15, who was killed in a crash involving a logging truck while on his way to school Tuesday morning.
[ High school student killed when log crashes through windshield ]
Students and staff at the Lenoir school wore the colors of Oliver’s favorite team, the Carolina Panthers.
"He was big Panthers fan,” student John Pezzi said. “He always had this gray hoodie with black sleeves and big panther thing in the middle and he wore that every other day."
"I broke down in tears,” student Maggie Earp said. “I couldn't believe it."
Oliver died while riding to school with his father in a pickup truck, after the truck struck the rear of a logging truck. The logging truck was turning onto Highway 90 at the time, which caused the logs to swing wide just as the pickup truck passed.
Many of the students had to travel by the crash scene on their way to school.
"I broke down. I was numb,” student Alabama McClellan said. “I'm still numb to this day. It's still hard to believe, very hard to believe that something like that happened."
Students made a memorial at Oliver's desk in his honors biology class.
Oliver’s initials were on the football players' helmets Friday night as the team stayed undefeated and advanced to the finals.
The seniors are helping the sophomores grieve. They too lost a classmate, four years ago, and the tragedies have brought the two classes together.
"I'm so glad the whole community is pitching in for this,” senior Tory Haas said. “And we're going to have a big turnout for the game. And that whole stadium is going to be blue."
Prior to Friday night’s game against Shelby, there was a moment of silence for Oliver and the principal says there is fundraising planned to help his family.
"We basically plan each day and the following day, and we listen to our students because they're teaching us how to grieve," Principal David Colwell said.
The memorial services for Oliver will be held this weekend at Greer-McElveen Funeral Home in Lenoir.
Family and friends will be received on Saturday from 5 to 8 p.m. Oliver's funeral will be on Sunday at 2 p.m.
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