Under normal circumstances, the night after Christmas would be a quiet one at Pine-Richland High School.
But three days after 14-year-old student Jonathan Tourney’s unexpected death, the sound of the high school marching band’s somber rendition of “Amazing Grace” cut through the air, echoing through the school parking lot.
Hundreds of candles illuminated the grief-stricken faces of the students and families who held them as they gathered in front of the stadium to mourn, embracing one another and exchanging hushed condolences.
Jonathan, a freshman at Pine-Richland High School, was a starting receiver on the junior varsity football team.
“Anything he did he did well and he did it with 100 percent.He had a big heart and a big smile and a great personality,” said Joe Merhaut, a neighbor close with the Tourney family. “He’s just such a great kid. We loved him so dearly. He’s going to be missed.”
Jonathan died early Saturday morning following a car wreck on Irwin Road in McCandless near North Park. He was a passenger in an SUV that crashed into a tree at a high rate of speed after an 18-year-old driver lost control of the car, according to the Allegheny County Police Department.
Jonathan was flown to a local hospital, where he later died of his injuries. He was one of six people in the vehicle, and one of two who didn’t survive. Taylor Orlowski, an 18-year-old girl from Baden, was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the Allegheny County Police Department.
Standing on concrete steps and looking over the crowd was Tanner Cunningham, a junior on the football team who grew up with Jonathan.
Tears fell as Tanner spoke to the crowd. Standing among them was Jonathan’s mother, Ellie Tourney, and his older brother, Jeffrey Tourney, who graduated from Pine-Richland High School last spring.
Just hours before, the football team and its head coach stood in Jonathan’s living room as they presented his mother with his football jersey, which had been signed by the team and placed in a frame.
“It’s great to see the community come together, I mean I’m lost for words,” Tanner said after the vigil. “The amount of people who showed up today is crazy. It’s amazing to see all these people supporting.”
The football team also organized luminarias to be placed outside Jonathan’s family home. The paper lanterns will be collected and given to Ms. Tourney in the coming days.
Tanner fondly recalled playing with Jonathan when they were kids.
“I basically grew up with him, so it’s big for me, I mean it really hit home seeing him gone,” Tanner said.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the county police department said the investigation into the crash is ongoing. Two of the passengers are in stable condition at a local hospital. The other two survivors did not receive severe injuries.
The day after Jonathan’s death, Mr. Merhaut started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the funeral. The fundraising goal was set at $30,000.
Within an hour of going public, the $30,000 goal had been surpassed and within two hours it was tripled, Mr. Merhaut said. The GoFundMe has since raised a total of $114,913 as of Tuesday night.
“It’s incredible and it just goes to show how generous and how wonderful this community is,” Mr. Merhaut said. “People have really stepped up and have really shown a lot of support for the Tourney family.”
Ms. Tourney’s husband, David Tourney, died in May from a brain tumor, according to Mr. Merhaut.
“Ellie’s a special lady who has gone through a hard, hard season, so I just hope the community will keep rallying around her,” said Rev. Matt Mehaffey, a pastor at Discovery Church in Mars. “It’s easy to do it when everything’s still fresh, but the continued support is important even as the months go by, but I think this community will.”
Rev. Mehaffey will be speaking at Jonathan’s funeral on Thursday at Schellhaas Funeral Home & Cremation in Bakerstown. It will be followed by a public burial at Memorial Park Cemetery on Duncan Avenue at noon on Friday.
As the crowd extinguished the flames of their candles and the vigil drew to a close on Tuesday night, one message was clear: the Pine-Richland High School community support for Jonathan and his family would remain strong.
“I know Jonathan is looking down on all of us, and I know he’s with his dad now. That’s the only thing that gives me peace,” Mr. Merhaut said.
First Published: December 27, 2023, 3:30 a.m.
Updated: December 27, 2023, 6:11 p.m.