LENOIR, NC (November 28, 2017)…At the close of a difficult school day at Hibriten High School, students, faculty and staff have mourned the untimely death of sophomore Wesley Alfred Oliver, who was pronounced dead at the scene of a car accident only a few blocks from the school’s entrance.
A full team of social workers, counselors, nurses and members of the Clergy Crisis Response team were deployed to help students through the grieving process and to allow them to react to the tragedy with the support of classmates and professionally trained personnel.
Below is an announcement Principal David Colwell made today to the student body at Hibriten High:
“To the faculty, staff, and students of Hibriten, please allow me your undivided attention. Many of you witnessed the aftermath of a serious automobile accident this morning, right in front of our school. I regret to inform you that one of our own, Wesley Oliver, a sophomore, was taken from us this morning. Our crisis management team is meeting right now in order for us to meet the counseling needs that we all are going to need. We are in the process of requesting additional counselors from other schools to come to Hibriten. At this time, I ask all of you to take a moment of silence in memory of one of our own. Hibriten has always had a reputation for being a tight knit family. We will get through this together. We are family.”
In memory of Wesley Oliver, the sophomore class officers determined that Friday, Dec. 1, will be Blue Out Day to honor Wesley by wearing his favorite Carolina Panther blue color. The colors for Wesley will continue into evening at the 2A semi-final championship football game at Hibriten High, at which time a Moment of Silence will also be observed. The Hibriten High Panthers football team will remember Wesley by donning football helmets with the initials WO.
The school anticipates organizing a memorial fund for the Wesley Oliver family with more information forthcoming.