BUTLER COUNTY, Pa. — Hearts remained heavy Thursday in Penn Township, a day after a Knoch High School football player was killed in a rollover crash on Route 8.
Penn Township police said 16-year-old Cameron Ashton was a passenger in an SUV that was involved in a fatal rollover crash around 3 p.m. Wednesday.
RELATED: Knoch HS student identified as victim of fatal Route 8 crash
"This was our child. He was one of ours, and life without him won't be the same,” said Melody Kaltenhauser, a close family friend and spokesperson for the Ashton family."He was such a smiling, loving young man that life will never be the same without him."
Cameron's good friend, who is also 16 years old, drove him home every day from VO Tech. He survived the crash.
"I'm absolutely sure that if he could take yesterday back and do it over again, he would in a heartbeat,” Kaltenhauser said.
Kaltenhauser’s children grew up with Cameron, participating in Cub Scouts with him and playing football together. She said Cameron had an unforgettable smile and loved sports.
"He was the spirit of the team. He was the guy you could hear him on the football field behind other players, rooting them on,” Kaltenhauser said.
Kaltenhauser said Cameron’s death has rocked the Knoch community.
"Hug your kids when they leave every day. Tell them you love them because you never know if you're going to get a chance to do it again,” she said.
Cameron’s funeral will be held Friday. A
had been established to help the Ashton family offset the costs.
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