18-year-old Riley Johnson was killed in a car accident on Interstate 35 on Saturday.
18-year-old Riley Johnson was killed in a car accident on Interstate 35 on Saturday.
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18-year-old Riley Johnson was killed in a car accident on Interstate 35 on Saturday.
Family and friends honored the life of a Norman high school senior who was killed in a car accident.
Riley Johnson, 18, was killed in a car accident on Interstate 35 on Saturday. Johnson was just weeks away from graduation.
Family and friends mourned his loss but are confident he’s dancing on streets of gold. They described him as God-fearing and one-of-a-kind.
They’ve put up two crosses in his honor in hopes of remembering him and where he is now.
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“He’s not truly gone. You’ll see him driving down the road one day and he’ll be right there waving you on and telling you to drive safe and that you’ll always have that passenger with you no matter what,” Marshall McKinnon, Johnson’s friend, said.
A cross stands in honor of Johnson.
“Sleep, breathe, cars. That’s what brought us together. We build our cars together, we take them down to the track, and we live life not expecting one of us to sadly succumb to it,” McKinnon said.
His friends gathered to pray together and remember the impact he left.
“He impacted so many people’s lives,” said Trenton Williams, Johnson’s friend.
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They recalled memories of Johnson on Monday.
“After the first day you met him, you just couldn’t forget about him,” Karlee Azbell, Johnson’s friend, said.
They remember his laugh.
“He was like a little brother to me,” Ethan Thomas, Johnson’s friend, said.
They remembered his loyalty and his love for cars.
“Any car you hear by that’s loud, you’ll turn around and hope it’s him. Looking in the sunset, you just think of Riley up there painting a beautiful picture for you,” McKinnon said.
Ultimately, they said Johnson was the glue of the friend group.
“We all live in the same neighborhood, so we always hear his car drive by and it’s just going to be weird not hearing him,” Thomas said.
They said they’ll stay together because that’s what Johnson would want.
“I hope he knows how many friendships he changed into family,” Azbell said.
Johnson’s family told KOCO 5 that Johnson was one of a kind.
“I would like to say Riley was such a light to everyone who knew him and had such a caring heart. He was a truly special young man. He put his faith in God and we were all blessed to know him and love him. I know I’ll see him again one day but this world is worse off without him here,” said Tanner Turk, Johnson’s dad.
His mom, Cori Warr, also remembered her son.
“It’s hard to capture the essence of Riley in so few words. He was the sunshine in so many lives. He met friends easily and made them friends for life. Our son lived his life to the fullest every day and made everyone around him laugh and have a good time. He was such a blessing in our life the short 18 years we had him. Riley will forever be in our hearts!” Warr said.
You can find the GoFundMe here.
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Family, friends honor life of Norman high school senior killed in car accident – KOCO Oklahoma City
