The community is mourning the sudden loss of fifth-grader Austin Jase Fretwell, 11, and his mother, Jennifer “Jen” Fugate Fretwell, 38. Both passed away Sept. 27 following injuries sustained in a car accident on Highway 43. Noah Fretwell – a 10th-grade student at Russellville High School and Austin’s brother – was airlifted to Birmingham.

A prayer vigil took place at RES Sept. 28 in memory of both. During the Golden Tiger football game Friday, their competitor, Mars Hill, reached out ahead of time to see what they could do to help. They took up a collection during the game and turned it over to Russellville City Schools’ superintendent, Dr. Heath Grimes, to help with the family’s funeral expenses. RHS principal Dr. Jeremy Madden said the offering amounted to $3,500, along with a portion of the proceeds Mars Hill obtained from parking for Friday’s game.

Other members of the community have been involved in fundraising to help with expenses. Those interested in contributing can contact Russellville Elementary School or Russellville City Schools. There is a Go Fund Me page on Facebook.

Students at Jase’s school, RES, along with students in other schools, wore his favorite colors, red and blue, in his memory on Monday, in honor of his love for the Tennessee Titans. RES students released red and blue balloons Monday afternoon as a remembrance.

“Jase brought a smile to everyone he encountered,” explained RES principal Tiffany Warhurst. “He loved to tell jokes and make his classmates laugh. He also loved to play basketball and watch his favorite football team play, the Tennessee Titans.”

Warhurst said the students’ responses have “absolutely amazed” her during this time.

“They’ve come up with several ideas to honor their classmate,” she added. “His sweet spirit will live forever in our hearts and hallways. Enough money has been raised to pay for his funeral expenses. Anything over that amount will be given to the family to spend on his burial plot, headstone and medical expenses, as his older brother was airlifted from the scene.”

Warhurst described it as “an absolutely heartbreaking situation all around.”

“Losing a child is something that I will never understand, but I know Jase and his mother are both looking down and smiling, knowing how many lives they have already restored. Please continue to keep their families, faculty and our students in your prayers.”