Ridgeville, South Carolina (WCSC) – In memory of the former lowcountry football star’s 21st birthday, his family, friends and community gathered on Saturday to celebrate his life.
Lavel Davis Jr. was one of three University of Virginia football players killed in a campus shooting on November 13th. Growing up in the area, he was an All-Star football player at Woodland High School and ranked among his top recipients in the nation at UVA.
Hundreds of community members gathered in Ridgeville, stopping at his cemetery and elementary school along the way, and walked the five kilometers to honor his life. People from South Carolina, as well as Boston, Virginia, Atlanta, and Los Angeles walked to remember Davis.
His cousin Lynn Singleton says he was an amazing young man who influenced many while he was on Earth.
“I love the fact that I can focus on the fact that he had such a beautiful life,” says Singleton. “This is very important to remember what we do and give to others while we are on Earth. It’s not the time that matters, it’s the impact that counts.”
Davis’ friends and family released 21 balloons to celebrate Davis’ much-anticipated birthday. His friends and family also say it was an emotional day, but it was most important to celebrate the life he lived.
One of his longtime friends, Laila Rogers, explains why she felt the need to remember Davis’ birthday.
“Sometimes I just want to be alone, so I felt like I had to do whatever I could to make myself feel better, but being here in his hometown and being with his family made me feel better. “Just to know that I’m around people who know I love him,” Rogers says.
The family hopes to create an organization in the future to inspire others to live a life similar to Davis’s.
“I hope people realize that size is what matters most in life. “From that, we can learn how much he loved God and wanted to share it with others,” says Singleton. am.”
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