(OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss.) — Family and friends of Mississippi teenager Nolan Wells gathered Monday for his funeral in his hometown of Ocean Springs as authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding his death.
Wells’ mother, Christine Wonsley, said at the service at Center Pointe Church, “We thank you, Lord, for the beautiful 18 years that you blessed us with him.”
“Thank you for the joy he brought, not only to our family, but also to his friends and everyone in the community whose lives he touched,” Wonsley said with her husband, Rev. Al Sharpton and family civil rights attorney Ben Crump by her side.
“Nolan had such a gentle, calming spirit about him,” she said.
She described her 18-year-old son as protective and nurturing, noting that he hoped to have three daughters one day.
“We will miss everything about him, from his quiet nature to the corny jokes. His gentle smile, the way he made everyone around him feel comfortable, loved and at ease,” Wonsley said. “Your absence has left an emptiness that can never truly be filled — a piece of our hearts will always be missing.”
“We will continue to fight for you,” she said through tears.
Wells’ father, Elmore Wonsley, was overcome with emotion as he recalled his son’s excellence in football, telling the mourners, “I nicknamed you Mr. Cool Hands, because it seemed like you were catching a touchdown every game.”
“You wanted to be the best, so I poured all my knowledge into you that I could — by taking you to the gym to work out, taking you to the beach to do drills in the sand, teaching you how to watch film, how to study your opponents’ strengths and weaknesses. And you carried these teachings all the way through high school,” he said.
Elmore Wonsley thanked everyone for attending the funeral.
“Nolan meant a lot to a lot of people, and today just shows us how much he meant to the community, to the country and to the world,” he said.
Sharpton, who delivered a eulogy, said, “We want to celebrate Nolan, and at the same time, say we want a full and thorough investigation.”
As Wells’ parents joined Crump on stage, he led the mourners in a chant, saying, “Nolan’s life matters.”
“Until we get answers, until we get to truth, until we get to justice, we going to stand up and we going to keep ringing the justice bells for Nolan Wells,” Crump said.
Although the investigation is ongoing, officials say there’s no indication that Wells’ death was the result of anything criminal.
Director Spike Lee was among those who attended the service, Sharpton said, and actor and director Tyler Perry paid for the funeral.
Wells went missing on the 4th of July after going on a boat trip with his high school friends to the popular, undeveloped Horn Island, just south of Ocean Springs, according to officials and Crump.
“[The friends] left [Horn Island] and went back without Nolan,” Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter said. “From what we understand, he chose to stay there.”
Wells’ body was recovered two days later, according to officials.
Authorities said they believe the college football player drowned. The sheriff said he doesn’t suspect foul play, but he stressed that investigators are “working diligently to determine exactly what occurred.”
The autopsy from the coroner’s office has not yet been completed. Wells’ family is desperate for answers and sent his body to Washington, D.C., for an independent autopsy, Crump said previously.
Ledbetter told ABC News that the sheriff’s office welcomes the family’s independent investigation.
“Nolan Wells’ family deserves a thorough and factual investigation, and that’s exactly what they’re going to get,” Ledbetter told ABC News last week.
Wonsley told ABC News her son was a “bright light,” recalling that “his smile, his energy was just, just so infectious.”
“He was just a genuinely a good person,” she said.
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