I AM…
By Jared Acuna
On the evening of Wednesday, February 8th, a seemingly endless line of cars stretched into Camp Rilea. Braving the hard rain, the procession of travelers and locals alike came to pay their tributes and respects to the late Trevor Gene Secord who tragically passed away two weeks prior at age 16.
A home-grown Warrenton boy as well as an avid athlete for the Warriors, Trevor’s Celebration of Life was hosted at Camp Rilea’s own Warrior Hall. Inside was a massive community of support, bigger than Secord’s family could have expected. With every seat taken, the walls were simply brimming with the countless lives that had known Trevor, crossed paths with him and lived side by side with him.
With his passion for baseball, wrestling and working out, it was Secord’s football team that arrived at the memorial service in jersey uniform. It was an honored testament to Trevor’s purple and white roots that ran deep with the Warriors, an assembly of young athletes that could be considered Secord’s extended family.
“He absolutely loved Warrenton,” reminded his mother, Christine. “From the time he was little, he would say, ‘Momma, I want to be a Warrior one day.’ What I had to explain to him was that he was already a Warrior. He was born a Warrior.”
Trevor’s Warrior spirit was certainly evident across the event. His own teammates even gave up their chairs so others could sit. Everyone agreed that it was a selfless act that characterized Trevor perfectly, as he would have been right there giving up his chair with them.
“To give us hope,” was the theme of the night, as opened by Pastor Ray Bergerson. It was a time of healing that continued as loved ones shared stories and poems that described the young man best. The common thread being, “Trevor was a winner.” Kept alive through Secord’s family are the memories of all his smiles and his way of “creating solutions to competitive problems.”
The night was lovingly outshined by Trevor’s own words that he had written earlier in his life. An enthusiast of his native outdoors, Trevor wrote:
I am from the cool morning air, from the feel of the warm morning sun, from a small crowded bedroom.
I am from the small, mucky farm, from the couch where I sit…
… I am from family and friends, from the ‘Why do you spend so much time outside?’ I am from God…
… I am from all the scrapes and bruises, from all the blood and pain.
I am from all the childhood memories just tossing around in my brain. I am from home…
By Trevor Secord
