Nolan Wells funeral set for Monday in Ocean Springs
Hundreds are expected at the Mississippi service for the teen football standout found dead on Horn Island after a July 4 outing.
By Frankie Delgado · News Reporter
3 min read
Nolan Wells, the Mississippi teen football standout found dead on Horn Island days after a July 4 trip with friends, will be remembered Monday morning at a funeral in Ocean Springs, according to NBC News.
The service is scheduled for Center Pointe Church in Ocean Springs, the Gulf Coast city where Wells lived. NBC News reported that hundreds of mourners are expected to attend.
Ben Crump, the attorney representing Wells’ family, is expected to deliver remarks framed as a call for justice. The Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader, is scheduled to give the eulogy, according to NBC News.
Wells’ parents, Elmore Wonsley and Christine Wells-Wonsley, joined Crump last week to discuss the funeral plans. Wells-Wonsley said Wednesday that the family wanted the day to feel like a celebration of her son’s life.
“What we’re going to do is kind of have a party to celebrate him,” Wells-Wonsley said, according to NBC News. “We want to celebrate him, and he would not want us to be sitting around crying and eating.”
That gathering will take place at the Jackson County Fairgrounds, she said, with friends, family and Wells’ teammates invited. Crump also said last week that filmmaker Tyler Perry would cover the cost of the funeral, NBC News reported.
What happened on Horn Island
Wells went to Horn Island, off Mississippi’s coast, with a group of friends for the Fourth of July, according to NBC News. His friends returned to the mainland later that day and told police that Wells chose to remain on the island and planned to get a ride back with other people.
When Wells did not come home that night, his mother reported him missing around midnight. A U.S. park ranger found his body July 6 on the island’s northwest shore, NBC News reported.
Officials have not released an autopsy report, and authorities have not said how Wells died. NBC News reported that the investigation into the circumstances of his death has intensified.
Crump and Wells’ parents have said they are also conducting their own inquiry. They arranged an independent autopsy, and Crump thanked Colin Kaepernick at Wednesday’s news conference for paying for it, according to NBC News.
Friends remember Wells
People who knew Wells have described him with affection in the weeks since his death.
Daniel Pickens, a high school friend, told NBC News that Wells was “an amazing human being” and said he had never heard anyone speak poorly of him.
“He truly lit up every room that he walked into,” Pickens said, according to NBC News. “He was a stand-up, genuine and A-1 guy.”
Pickens added that it was “so sad to see a gentle soul go out like that.”
This story draws on original reporting from NBC News.