Students Organize Vigil in Remembrance of Teacher

By: Owen Jensen - Email

Updated: Fri 5:04 AM, Nov 30, 2012

"Everybody trusted him." -Irving Middle School Student

On Thursday night, a candlelight vigil was held to remember 51-year-old Everett Smith, a para-educator at Irving Middle School in Lincoln who died unexpectedly Tuesday.

And the vigil, organized by students using social media, well, they got the word out fast and the turnout was impressive to say the least.

Hundreds showed up under a moon lit sky, many with tears in their eyes, hugging, remembering, laughing and reflecting.

"Everybody trusted him," said one student.

"It was amazing how many people he touched," said another student.

Smith, who worked at Irving for over 6 years, was in charge of the classroom where kids are sent when they got out of line. A time out room. If you ended up in his room, you knew he was going to have a word with you to set you straight.

"Without him, I probably wouldn't have made it," said one former student, now on his way to becoming a U.S. Marine.

Smith, who was also a coach, was a "calming person" according to the school principal. His job was to get kids back on track.

Not only did he do that, he earned their respect in the process.

At the end of the vigil, the kids cheered for Mr. Smith.

For more on this emotional night, just watch the story above.

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