Loved ones say goodbye to Georgia student killed at bus stop
By JOSH MORGAN
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LAWRENCEVILLE, Georgia (WGCL) — Loved ones said their final goodbyes Saturday to a young man who was shot and killed at his high school bus stop in Lawrenceville earlier this month.
16-year-old Timothy Barnes, Jr., who was a student at Central Gwinnett High School, was shot in the head on Nov. 3 while waiting for the school bus. 17-year-old Serar Shakiib Abdi was arrested in connection to that shooting.
On Saturday, classmates and family members honored Barnes, as they continue to cope with a life lost too soon.
“He was always smiling. Any [picture] they got of him in there, I’m telling you—always smiling,” said Teyana Hall, one of his classmates told CBS46. “If he was in a room right now he would be the only person who could make you laugh.”
Memories like this have helped the Lawrenceville community survive after the unexpected loss of Barnes earlier this month.
“Y’all gotta understand that this could have easily been avoided. Easily. Now all we can do in this moment is keep on with his legacy and let everyone know who he was,” said Hall.
His classmates say he was quiet at first, but always knew the right thing to say. And amidst the mourning, questions as to how a tragedy like this can be avoided in the future.
“Why is it happening? Why is it intensifying?” asked Veronica Horne, a parent at Saturday’s funeral. “What can we do to be proactive versus reactive?”
And while those questions remain unanswered, Barnes’ classmates what to see the violence come to an end.
“Life is so important right now. “Life is so short. Tomorrow is not promised and y’all should understand that. Stop the violence, it ain’t gonna help in the future,” Hall said.
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