We didn't know Trayton Gage Adams. What we know now is the 6-year old Flomaton resident died last Thursday afternoon when a four wheeler turned over with him as a passenger.
You didn't have to know Trayton for your heart to sink when you heard the news. He had just completed kindergarten at Flomaton Elementary School. We reached out to Principal George Brown and Trayton's teacher Brittany Brown. They knew him, they knew his smile, they knew his big heart and they knew the hugs he loved to give.
“I'm extremely heartbroken,” Mrs. Brown said.
Teachers, especially kindergarten teachers, learn to love children like they were their very on. They see them everyday and they receive those hugs.
Principals at elementary schools get to know those students very well also, we could feel the pain Mr. Brown had when we talked to him.
You didn't have to know Trayton for your heart to break. A 6-year old in our community is dead.
“I didn't know the child personally but he's a child of our community,” Flomaton Police Chief Chance Thompson told us. “It breaks your heart.”
We don't know all the details of what happened last Thursday that caused the death of Trayton. We know enough to know he was killed while riding on a four wheeler.
Our point is, four wheelers are not toys. They are machines that can reach high speeds. They are machines that can crash and injure or kill those riding on them.
Nothing can be done to bring Trayton back to the first grade at Flomaton next year. But we hope parents and other adults will remember Trayton before they put another child on a four wheeler.
If reading the story on the front page or this editorial doesn't remind you that tragic accidents can happen in a split second you have your head in the sand.
Don't let Trayton die in vain. Use his death to make sure no other child is seriously injured or killed riding a four wheeler.
