JEFFERSON, Ga. — Elijah DeWitt was a star prep football player before being gunned down in the parking lot of a Lawrenceville shopping center last week.
Family and friends took time to honor Elijah's memory Sunday evening as the small Jackson County community of Jefferson prepares for his funeral this week.
Jefferson High School is where Elijah made his mark, and his impact on the entire community is evident by the number of people who came out for his vigil. About a hundred people clutched lit candles close, they cried, and they remembered at a vigil in a quiet Jefferson cul-de-sac.
“We feel a very, very, very big, lonely void," Elijah's mother, Dawn DeWitt said. "We loved our son beyond measures, and our hearts are broken."
Dawn said it still doesn't feel real her son is gone at just 18-years-old.
“I'm having this moment of, wait I need to check on what time he’s coming home, and realizing I will not make that text again," Dawn said.
She comes to terms with her unimaginable grief as she reflects on her son's character.
“I just want people to remember him as Elijah DeWitt, who was a motivated, talented, sweet, kind soul," she said.
The star wide receiver stood 6-feet 2-inches tall and his heart was as big as stature.
“He is a gentle giant," Dawn remarked.
Bailey Reidling and Elijah had been boyfriend and girlfriend for almost five years.
“He cared more than anyone I’ve ever met," Reidling said. "That’s why I loved him so much because he reminds me of my daddy."
Reidling recalled Elijah's intelligence, noting that most people didn't know that he was a "very soft" person deep inside. She said that he "loved everyone.”
The love Elijah had for people is reflected in the outpouring of support from the close-knit Jefferson community at his vigil.
“We are together doing this in honor of him and in celebration of him because I feel I can hold him close to my heart and he would be proud as I was of him," Dawn said.
Elijah continues to give even in his death. His mom says he donated organs, which will help multiple people.
His viewing will take place on Tuesday, and friends and family will gather for his funeral on Wednesday at the Jefferson High School auditorium.