15-year-old dies after collapsing at football practice at Virginia school. ‘Tragedy’
_fitted.png "Jayvion Taylor, a 10th grade student who played on the JV football team at Hopewell High School died suddenly during a high school football practice in Virginia.")
A community is mourning the loss of a 15-year-old who died after suddenly collapsing during a high school football practice Monday, Aug. 5, in Virginia.
The 10th grade student, identified by local news outlets as Jayvion Taylor, played on the JV football team at Hopewell High School and collapsed after returning from a water break about 40 minutes into practice, according to a Hopewell City Public Schools statement.
“He was considered a ‘light’ to all who met him and left a lasting impact,” the district said.
Taylor fell unconscious about 10 feet away from a coach, according to the district. Two coaches in the vicinity immediately attempted CPR and called 911, school officials said, and paramedics arrived before AED could be used and transported Taylor to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The family later revealed to WTVR the teen had a heart attack.
In an obituary for Taylor, a commenter identified as McKenzie Hogan remembered the 10th grader fondly.
“He was one of the nicest people I ever meet in school,” Hogan wrote.
Teachers, too, praised the late teen.
“I don’t think anything any of us could say about him would do him justice, because he was such an amazing young man, and it’s a terrible tragedy,” Lara Van Gundy, who taught Taylor in eighth grade, told 8News.
Over 1,700 people as of Aug. 7 are demanding accountability from the school in a Change.org petition, citing “preventable circumstances” like air conditioning issues and lack of an athletics trainer.
“I heard about tragedy, and I thought it was highly preventable,” Trent McGee, a former Hopewell High School student, told McClatchy News. “We’ve lost a lot of students in the past year or so, and it’s just really sad to me.”
The district is set to address the community’s concerns about accountability, including issues related to air conditioning and the absence of an athletics trainer/, at a school board meeting Thursday, Hopewell City Public Schools told McClatchy news.
According to the petition, the AC system was broken, but the school remained open despite 90-degree weather. The football team also practiced that day without an athletic trainer, according to petition.
The district, which offered grief counseling and canceled classes the following day over AC concerns, responded in a statement by saying that athletic training services had been secured, but the contract start date is Aug. 12.
The petition also calls for “removal, or leniency” of the Yondr Pouch Policy, a locked phone policy the school has, and better transparency and communication between the school and parents.
Hopewell City is set to host a city-wide prayer vigil Wednesday evening in response to Taylor’s death and a recent double homicide taking place in the community, according to Vannette Taylor, an organizer of the event.
“I felt as if prayer was needed for our community,” Taylor told McClatchy News.
Hopewell is located about a 20-mile drive southeast of Richmond.
This story was originally published August 7, 2024 at 3:28 PM.
