Kyle Hurd remembers Codey Porter as his first and only friend at Silver Firs Elementary.
“He would always come up to me and say ‘Hi Kyle,’ and ”Sup,’” Hurd said. “I remember when he got a sugar rush on Valentine’s Day. He started jumping up and down.”
Hurd was one of several Silver Firs students who shared memories of Porter at a memorial service at the school Tuesday, May 6.
Porter, 10 years old, died after accidentally being buried in a sandbox while playing with other children. The children were believed to be imitating Japanese anime characters March 8 when Porter asked his friends to bury him. They pulled Porter out when they realized he wasn’t breathing, but he died in the hospital days later.
For the memorial service, Porter’s classmates wrote memories of him on cards and hung them on a Japanese maple planted in his honor in the school’s courtyard.
Students described Porter as warm, outgoing and a little silly.
Student Autumn Scott remembered Porter coming back from a chef show and appearing in the door of his classroom still wearing his hat and apron.
“I’m back,” he said mischievously.
Another remembered a day that Porter made her laugh “really hard.”
“He walked up to me and asked, ‘Guess what I named my pig! Sir Snuffalufagus, that’s his name! Oink! Oink!’,” she told the crowd.
Porter often seemed concerned about others. Callie VanAelst remembered the day she and Porter were taking timed tests. Porter kept passing and she didn’t, but he kept on telling VanAelst she could pass.
Porter also brought books to other students during reading time.
When he was on lunch duty, he never got the lunch bags mixed up. He was good at “wall ball.”
And he had a lot of friends. Teachers recalled that Codey would hug them and hold their hand, even as he got to be an older student. Others recalled that he was always greeting people — warmly.
“My favorite memory of Codey was of him greeting me every morning with a big smile: ‘Hi, Mrs. Hanlon!’” teacher Kathy Hanlon told the crowd at the ceremony. “It was similar to a cup of coffee.”
Hanlon, who was Porter’s teacher this year, planned the ceremony with other teachers. She chose a red-barked Japanese maple because of Porter’s red hair.
During the ceremony, Porter’s desk stood near the microphone up front, along with a stuffed dog named Codey who’d kept Porter company in the hospital right before he died.
The boy’s father also spoke to the crowd.
“It was, ‘Dad, can you take me to school in the black Mustang?’” said Rick Porter, sharing a favorite memory. “I miss that little guy. I don’t know what else to say.”
After sharing their memories, children played a somber tune on xylophone and flute. In the background, people sobbed.
After the ceremony, Hanlon walked her class back to their room.
“Boys and girls, you did a really super job,” she said quietly. A girl wiped her nose, tears welling up in her eyes. “It’s not easy.”
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