MEMORY TRAIL CEREMONY Ceremony Scheduled Friday To Dedicate Nature Trail In Memory Of GW Graduate
Reported by: Bethany Simmons
Web Producer: Bethany Simmons
Reported: Oct. 25, 2012 3:48 PM EDT
Updated: Oct. 25, 2012 4:27 PM EDT
Eyewitness News Photo
South Hills
, Kanawha County
, West Virginia
A nature trail has been created in memory of a young man who died soon after graduating from a Kanawha County High School three years ago.
Willy Shuman had graduated from George Washington High School in May 2009, with plans to attend the U.S. Air Force Academy on a tennis scholarship. But all that changed in an instant. Just four days before he was set to leave for the academy, Shuman was killed in a car crash in June of that year.
Shuman was a long-distance running enthusiast and a member of the cross country team, according to a news release from Monty Warner, senior Army instructor for the JROTC at George Washington. With his background in mind, the idea was born to create the WAS Nature Trail in memory of Shuman. The trail runs behind the South Hills high school and is used by neighborhood residents, students, faculty and athletic teams.
Friday evening, those who have helped make the trail possible, along with friends, family and community members, will gather to remember Shuman's life and recognize those who have helped make the trail possible. Plans for the trail began about two years ago, and it's taken numerous organizations to complete it. Members of the George Washington Army JROTC, local Boy Scout troops and many others volunteered their time to help complete the trail. The West Virginia House of Delegate members from the 30th District secured a $10,000 grant to enhance the trail earlier this year.
That ceremony is planned for 6 p.m. Friday and is open to the public.
W.Va. man charged with threatening high school May 23, 2013 5:28 PM EDT Boone County police have arrested a Raleigh County man who allegedly invoked the mass shooting in Connecticut in a threatening message against a high school.
Tea party vs. old guard in Senate GOP rift May 23, 2013 5:51 PM EDT A long-simmering feud between establishment Republicans and tea partyers is in full view again with Sen. John McCain accusing younger colleagues of using tactics that might tempt Democrats to change Senate rules that now protect the minority party.
Medical marijuana issue clears Ohio ballot board May 23, 2013 6:56 PM EDT A proposed constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana and certain uses of hemp has cleared Ohio's ballot board.
Bethany Simmons
