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JUNALUSKA LAKE – Almost every seat in Stuart's 2,000-seat auditorium was filled as Western North Carolina bid farewell to Riley Carl Howell.
Howell's last act was to confront an armed man on the UNC campus in Charlotte, thus saving others' lives, but losing his own.
Howell was one of two students killed in a shootout where four others were injured.
About 10% of the people in the auditorium belonged to two well-known families in Haywood County – the Henry and the Howells – families who have claimed a legitimate place in local history in many ways.
The heroism of Riley Carl Howell is a sacrifice that is not likely to be overshadowed.
When Stuart's doors opened at 4 pm for the funeral set an hour later, the grand sidewalk was filled with people who came to show their respect. While they waited, Balsam Range's music filled the room and slides projected onto a screen recounted the highlights of Howell's 21 years on this Earth.
Charlotte police officers Jorge Santiago and Brent Plott traveled to Waynesville with police chaplain C.L. Brassfield to pay their last respects to Riley Howell.
Outside, friends continued to stream in as members of all of the county's law enforcement jurisdictions, accompanied by two Charlotte officers and their chaplain.
Reverend Dr. Robert M. Blackburn, who christened Howell at the age of six months, said no one could have imagined this moment just a week ago.
"Our hearts are never ready for these moments, but we are here together and that's where we need to be," he said. "We came here to give thanks for his life together."
He asked for prayers not only for the loss felt by family and friends, but also for the author of the heinous act, as well as for his family.
Howell's friends and family shared memories of the young man they will always remember because of his impact on his life.
Her sister, Iris, said Howell was everything she needed from a big brother – someone who had taught her to be tough and who would offer to beat her if she needed it.
Juliet said that her brother was a free spirit who "was really no fear" and was so "original and adorable" that she will never forget him.
Brother Teddy, barely 14 years old, said that during the first seven or eight years of his life, he only knew him as "Ri Ri", always ready for a wrestling match, only to be in the middle of his life. he would eat everyone's leftovers and that he would talk about cars for three hours. at a time.
There were only a few places left in the Stuart auditorium, which can hold 2,000, and people were lined up along the wall during Riley Howell's funeral.
"That it was there Tuesday was not bad luck," he said. "It was destiny."
Howell's fiancée, Lauren Westmoreland, spoke directly to Howell, recalling the time they met and the special moments they shared over the past five years.
"So many times you've made me feel like I was the only person in the world," she said.
His father, Kevin Westmoreland, spoke of all the broken hearts following the tragic death of Howell.
"Perhaps it was perhaps that God had moved the levers to place Riley in this classroom at that time in order to save others," he said, adding that Riley's death was likely to be meant to awaken all the love and kindness that often remain dormant.
T.C. Kathryn Sozeare, Eilah Wood and Claire Spake, both Roberson graduates, sign Riley Howell's guest book at the funeral.
Amy Westmoreland spoke about everything "this bright, handsome and humble young man" had made so that his daughter would become the person she is today.
She recalled her huge appetite and her "so warm and real hugs, I asked her about the plants, he asked me how to make better cookies," she said. "My heart is torn in two for my daughter, her family, our family."
Blackburn said Howell was wise beyond his years, noting that those who knew him best "said with one voice that they were not shocked" by his actions that day. fateful when a gunman came into a classroom and was knocked down by Howell.
"We will never forget Riley's last heroic and sacrificial act," Blackburn said. "We live in a cultural house that has become a haunted house, and this moment calls us to strengthen our resolve to try to build more caring communities."
Foolish acts of violence are difficult to understand because there are no easy solutions or answers.
Blackburn recalled the words that he had used in 1998 when he had christened Howell, the appellant to fully live out his gifts of God's child.
"We all become human beings," he said. "Then someone like Riley comes in and shows us how to be fully human, and he understood how to lead a certain life in this world."
While many continue to ask "why," Blackburn said the big question was "how."
"Our deepest need is not an explanation," he said. "Our deepest need is to find the strength to continue living … We come together, we hold each other and we hold on to God."
Blackburn prayed all to experience the "depth and breadth of God's love," claiming that Riley Howell's final act was "that of the day." ;love".
After a salute of three guns, a flag ceremony held by the guard of honor and the presentation of the flag to the parents of Howell, the family retired shortly after 18 hours. where they boarded several big buses and left the scene.
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