Dear fellow Hanoverians:
I am hard-pressed to find adequate words to describe what the loss of
Matthew Cox means to our community. I think one of the things that
strikes me the most is the outpouring from all corners of town…young
and old, classmates and teammates, parents and grandparents…for a
ten year old boy who so many of us knew, but so many more of us did
not know, myself included. So, we got to know him, we prayed for him,
we wept for him, and when it was announced Friday that he was gone, we
wept some more.
Matt was a Hanover boy. Raised here until last summer by his
kindhearted and loving parents Ann and Bill, he played sports here,
went to church here, and he grew as old as he would become here. His
tragic zip-lining accident the day after Christmas was every
parent’s worst nightmare. The innocence of a child, snatched while
laughing and playing? Whose heart would not break at that news?
So we did what Hanoverians do. We rallied around Matt and his family.
We stopped each other in the hall or grocery store to check in with
news about him. We read “Caring Bridge” updates to each other at
work, posted Facebook updates on our smartphones, and created
“Messages for Matthew” on a website. Hundreds of light blue
ribbons were wrapped around telephone poles and mailboxes all over
town. Games were dedicated to him. We donated money, took up
collections of gift cards, and printed up bracelets. We gathered at
St. Mary’s to pray, and some even found renewed faith thanks to Matt
and his family. We shared stories of Matt in the classroom, on the
ball fields and skating rinks, and in our homes. And we hoped, and we
cried together.
He brought us together, that too-young Hanover boy. For four weeks, we
were a little softer around each other, and perhaps a little more
forgiving. Some of us played with a bit more intensity because we
realized how fleeting play can be, and I am sure we were more loving
when looking in the eyes of a child. From all I have heard about him,
that sounds like who Matthew Cox was every day for his ten years:
softer, forgiving, playful and loving. Maybe we’ve all become a
little bit more like him. What a gift therefore he was to our
community! Godspeed Matthew Cox. Our thoughts and prayers are with
those who loved you.
For “Around Town on the Web”,
Cathy H-B
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