‘Heart of gold’: Community remembers 5-year-old killed in crash

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A community gathered in song and remembrance Friday to mourn the loss of a life gone too soon. St. Paul the Apostle Catholic School held an honor walk to remember one of their own: 5-year-old Baylor Marco. Around 3:30 p.m. Sunday, the Marco family was involved in a crash on US-131 near Day Road in Kalkaska County.   Investigators with the Kalkaska County Sheriff’s Office said a 19-year-old from Bellaire was heading northbound when they “abruptly” tried to pass a car trying to make a left turn. The driver cut into the southbound lane, striking the Marcos’ SUV head-on. Baylor died a few days later on Tuesday. The loss brought the students, staff and community together to honor Baylor's legacy. "He never saw a jersey he didn't love and oftentimes, no matter what the weather was, was outside in just a jersey and shorts," the school's principal, Michelle Morrow, told News 8 at the walk. "Today was such a beautiful day of celebrating this most amazing child's life." During the walk, students and staff lined the hall as a memorial was wheeled through the school and into the sanctuary. The walk was followed by the community gathering and singing Baylor's favorite song: "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)" by Hillsong United. One of his teachers, Amy Krajewski, told News 8 that she still sees Baylor in parts of her classroom. "I'll see something, and it will kind of trigger a memory of, like, 'Oh my gosh, he loved this activity.' And it's been hard for these kids too, because they remember the joy that they had with him doing these things," she said. "Some kids are just like, 'I don't want to do this.' Like, this fun is not fun right now, thinking about him not doing it with us." Another one of his teachers, Kellsey Bottema, agreed, saying a part of the classroom is missing. "It's hard because it never really feels like our class is complete. It just really feels like we are missing a big piece," she said. "He had such a big personality and such a commander of this group in so many ways." But Baylor's legacy does not just stay in the halls of his school. The Marco family decided to donate his organs to those who may need them most. So now, whoever gets matched for his organs can have a piece of Baylor with them forever. "I smile talking about him. I can only feel sad for so long because he is so easy to talk about," Krajewski said. "There are so many good things that he brought to this world." "Very easy to love, very easy to cheer on and we will miss him a whole lot," Bottema said. As Baylor's legacy took one final lap through the halls of the school he once knew, the community remembered him for his smile and his spirit. "Baylor was full of life. He lived life 100%. He always had a twinkle in his eye of mischievousness but a heart of gold," Morrow said. "The one beautiful thing about Baylor is that he lived life, and he only knew joy." "You have all these hopes and dreams and wishes for these kids, especially as a teacher, that you are putting so much into them so that when they grow up, they can be the best versions of themselves. To know that he's not going to be able to do that is really hard," Krajewski said. His principal wanted to leave him with one more message: "Baylor, have a blast. Thank you for looking out for us, and we cannot wait to see you in heaven." The local Catholic community is rallying around the Marco family, holding prayer services throughout the week and launching a GoFundMe campaign that has raised more than $155,000 as of Friday night. The crash investigation remains open, though police do not believe drugs or alcohol were a factor.