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Funeral Is Proof Gator's Spirit To Live On

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By GEORGE H. NEWMAN

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 5, 2008

PLANT CITY - PLANT CITY - The sanctuary at First Baptist Church of Plant City was filled with Gator orange and blue June 27 as family members, friends and classmates said goodbye to a University of Florida student who was fatally injured in a crash.

Kyle Edward Hughes, 21, died June 23, nine days after a Father's Day weekend accident in which Hughes lost control of his Ford Mustang. His passenger and 20-year-old friend, Jeremy Smith of Valrico, died at the scene. Hughes and Smith were to become roommates at UF in the fall term.

About 500 mourners, many dressed in Gators team colors at the family's request, filed into the church to pay their final respects. Officials at Hopewell Funeral Home said about 600 people attended a June 26 visitation, also at First Baptist, where the family attended church.

Hughes, a 2005 Durant High School graduate, was an avid sportsman whose passions included golf, basketball, Florida Gators football, friends and well-cared-for cars, particularly his own 2005 Mustang.

The Rev. Tommy Warnock, assistant pastor at First Baptist, said Hughes' older cousin, Beau Walden, summed it up best at Tampa General Hospital where the young man died.

"God's getting a good one today," Walden told Warnock as they looked out the hospital windows overlooking Tampa Bay.

Warnock spoke from a list of comments forwarded to him by a number of family members and friends. He mixed stories from the family with Scripture and prayer. First Baptist's music minister, the Rev. Pete Battaglia, sang several songs, including "I Can Only Imagine," a soulful song of heaven that brought an "Amen" from the church's senior pastor, the Rev. Ron Churchill, and others.

Pam Walden, an aunt to Hughes, shared fond memories.

"While we are still trying to face the fact Kyle is gone, right now he is celebrating with our Lord in heaven," Walden said. "From the beginning Kyle had a ready smile, and always approached things that he liked with a passion. For Kyle there is no more pain. He is whole in Christ."

Walden thanked Warnock and those present for their support and prayers.

Sam Dewbellis, a college friend to Hughes, said that it was not Hughes' zest for life that would stand out in his mind.

"The greatness of Kyle was shown in his love for the Lord," Dewbellis said. "He was always there for his friends. I will always love and miss him. We can best remember Kyle by giving to others in the same way that he gave to us."

Another friend, Philip Davis, said he would remember Hughes every time he heard the shuffle of poker chips, saw a golf ball being hit, and by the mere mention of "Kyle's beloved Gators."

Warnock spoke repeatedly of Hughes passion for all things around him, including his family and friends.

"Kyle appreciated the matriarchs and patriarchs in his family," Warnock said. "He was passionate, yes, but he was smart and quick-thinking. His passion was backed up by thought, knowledge and his thirst for information."

Warnock directed his comments briefly toward the many college-age people attending.

"In this messed up, jacked up world there is a need for you to know there is room for good things that exemplify the goodness in life," Warnock said. "God is always with us. God has a passion for us just as Kyle had a passion for his faith."

A Hillsborough County sheriff's report said the June 14 accident occurred when Hughes, who was westbound on Durant Road, lost control on a bridge just west of Turkey Creek. The car spun into the eastbound lane and collided with a 2000 Dodge Dakota pickup truck. The pickup's driver, Harrell Buckner Jr., sustained injuries that weren't life-threatening, a sheriff's spokeswoman said.

Hughes is survived by his parents, Lisa and Garry Hughes; sister, Kaitlin Hughes; maternal grandparents, Ben and Sylvia Knox; great-grandmother, Louise Reddick; and other relatives.

Reporter George H. Newman can be reached at (813) 865-4451 or gnewman@tampatrib.com.

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