NORTH CARROLLTON - The community is mourning the tragic death of a nine-year-old boy.
Tyler Marett, 9, of North Carrollton was killed Saturday when he collided with a truck while riding his ATV on Leflore County Road 552 near Morgan City.
Marett is the son of newly-elected North Carrollton alderwoman Jennifer Misskelley Marett and Brock Marett of Starkville. He is the grandson of North Carrollton Mayor Pete Misskelley.
Funeral services were held Tuesday at Carrollton Baptist Church, and burial followed in Evergreen Cemetery. A visitation was held Monday night at Lee Funeral Home in Winona, and hundreds attended to pay their respects to the family.
Marett's pastor Gary Bunch said, "Although we have been here less than two years, Tyler touched our lives. My wife, Connie, taught him in Sunday School. She found him to be a joy to teach. He was quick to answer questions, astute in the questions he asked and exuberant-in a polite way. She said she most of all loved the big hug he would give her after class was over. I always admired the way he looked me in the eye when he talked to me. As he left the church after services, he always shook my hand firmly. Tyler was all boy, on his way to being all man."
Connie Bunch echoed her husband's sentiments, "When Tyler looked at you with his beautiful eyes, you saw his heart. When you spent time with him, you felt his joy."
A fourth grade student at Carroll Academy, Marett was also a member the Fire Department Volunteers Little League Baseball Team. His teammates served as honorary pallbearers at the funeral.
Several people who had close ties with Marett remember him as an excellent student that will be missed in the North Carrollton community.
"He was a typical energetic kid that was well-mannered and a nice young man," Carroll Academy Headmaster Carl Blaylock said.
Blaylock said the Carroll Academy family expresses their deepest sympathy for the family during their time of mourning.
"Whatever they need, we will be there for them," Blaylock said. "All of our prayers go out to the family."
It was hard for Carrollton/North Carrollton Deputy Fire Chief Phil Costilow to fight back the tears when describing Marett's personality on baseball field during the summer months.
Last year Costilow, among others, coached Marett on the Carrollton/North Carrollton sponsored baseball team at the Carroll County Recreational Park in North Carrollton.
"I coached him last year and he was full of life," Costilow said with a cracked voice, "And with Pete [Misskelley] being on the board for the past couple of years, we have watched him grow up before us. He and my son played together and went to church together and it's like losing your own. My heart goes out to the family."
Post a Comment