Skip to main content

A New Year’s Eve Tragedy

I’m going to do two things today that I generally try to limit as much as possible. The first is copy and paste. And the second is to ask for money. For your consideration:

On the early morning of January 1, 2018, we experienced a New Year that we will never forget. Lawrence Aaron III attended a NYE party in Severn, MD with his friends and was struck in the back by a stray bullet fired from an unidentified party goer. The bullet hit Lawrence in the thoracic spine and has resulted in paralysis from the waist down.

Our family is devastated, but truly thankful for God’s mercy on Lawrence’s life. Whether you know him as Lawrence, Larry, L, or Lo – we can all agree that the bravery and strength of this man is unmatched. Lawrence is a 19-year-old from Columbia, MD with an extremely bright future ahead of him.

As an Oakland Mills High School graduate, Lawrence was a standout student athlete in football earning him 1st Team All Howard County Honors and 2nd Team All-Metro Honors. He helped lead his team to one of the best records in the county in football resulting in a full athletic scholarship to Marshall University in Huntington, W.Va. Lawrence also excelled on the basketball court helping to lead the Scorpions to a state championship and on the baseball field exhibiting the qualities of a well-rounded student athlete.

Lawrence is currently a sophomore at Marshall where he has excelled in the classroom and made lifelong friends. He is a defensive tackle for The Thundering Herd, who recently won the Gildan New Mexico Bowl Game on December 16, 2017. During his time at Marshall he has shown growth as he strives to achieve his life-long goals.

If you know Lawrence, you know that he has always had a large group of personal cheerleaders behind him. From his little league sports games to the Howard County fields and courts, and more recently the Joan C. Edwards stadium, his support system has never failed at cheering him on. During this difficult time, we will continue to be his biggest fans and cheer him on. We encourage all to join our support team. Donations will be used for medical and living expenses and creating a living environment which will accommodate Lawrence’s current and future conditions.

The family thanks all those that have reached out through prayers, calls, text messages and visits to see him. We understand that this will be a journey as we all come together to provide endless support, love, and care for Lawrence throughout his recovery. Any support during this difficult time is greatly appreciated.

 
Blessings,

The Family of Lawrence Aaron III


(From the Go Fund Me page established by the family) 

https://www.gofundme.com/wearelarrystrong

For the last twenty four hours I have read heartfelt posts from one of Mr. Aaron’s former teachers and the mother of an OMHS classmate. His story should be one of endless possibility. Now he faces challenges most of us cannot even imagine.

I know many many of us are tapped out from holiday spending and/or end of year charitable giving. If you are able, share a little to help this young man and his family. He needs more cheerleaders than ever right now.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...

F ³: We Are Not Entitled

  A college student went missing. His family and friends were distraught. The community was encouraged to be on the lookout and spread the word.  Days passed.  They must have been agonizing days for those who cared about the missing student. Thoughts that foul play had been involved cannot have been far from their thoughts.  Then, at last, the student was found. Alive. The news was shared with the public.  So. Much. Relief. A family had been reunited with their child. Even though we know that life is complicated, I think it is okay to accept this as a happy ending and leave it at that.  But the world of social media says no. For every expression of joy at the news came questions and even judgement. It became clear to me that some folks felt entitled to an explanation. They wanted the backstory. It’s as though they felt that, by enlisting the help of the public on social media, the authorities now owed them all the details. Television dramas often weave curr...

Separate and Unequal

  Remember “Separate but equal”? Remember how that really meant that Black schools languished in  broken-down buildings without adequate heat or toilet facilities, with cast-off, ragged learning materials, underfunded and largely ignored? The Supreme Court struck that down in 1954. The evidence was clear that separate was not equal. Plessy v Ferguson had led to - - no, endorsed - - deeply unequal schooling and opportunities. We tend to think of Brown v Board as being purely about racial integration. It was not.  It was about the logical consequences of segregation. And they were not, not, not equal. The ruling in 1954 didn’t transform public education for non-whites into a land of milk and honey by any means. But it articulated some essential truths in a way that made including everyone a legal precedent which could be relied upon and built upon. It was better than what came before it but it rested upon unsteady ground. It did not necessarily change the hearts or minds ...