Mourners remember toddler killed in OSU homecoming crash

Published 7:30 pm Wednesday, October 28, 2015

WEATHERFORD, Okla. — The last time that Nash Lucas saw his father, the 2-year-old was so excited that he’d soon be attending Oklahoma State University’s homecoming parade, he talked of little else.

On Wednesday, family members filed past the boy’s green–and-yellow, John Deere-inspired coffin. They and dozens of other mourners filled the First Baptist Church in Weatherford to say good-bye to a red-head who loved singing the “Itsy-Bitsy Spider” and his ABCs.

The boy was the youngest of four people killed Saturday when a driver careened into a crowd of people watching the homecoming parade in Stillwater.

Forty-six others were injured including his mother, Niki Strauch, who attended the funeral in a wheelchair with her foot and ankle wrapped in a bandage, and Strauch’s mother, Carie.

Police have arrested Adacia Chambers, 25, on suspicion of second-degree murder for driving into the crowd.

Though the toddler lived in Stillwater while his mother attended Oklahoma State, he was born in Weatherford. Much of his surviving family still lives here.

By the end of an almost hour-long funeral, there were few dry eyes in the church. Mourners had remembered a boy who loved music so much that he always begged Strauch to turn on “the video” — his word for radio. He dreamed of one day driving a green tractor, and he loved bedtime stories about tractors and dinosaurs.

The Rev. Earl Stephenson, the church’s pastor, who officiated the service, told mourners that the toddler visited his father, Josh Lucas, the weekend before the parade and was brimming with excitement about the upcoming festivities.

“This is a day of overwhelming sorrow,” Stephenson said. “We can’t help but grieve at what has happened, but we are so thankful Nash did live.”

Stephenson said there are still more questions than answers about what happened last weekend, but even “if we knew why, it still wouldn’t hurt any less.”

He said Nash was “insanely smart” and funny.

“His personality was just one of great joy,” he said.

Before the funeral, Joe Ridley, Nash’s great-uncle, read a brief statement to the media thanking everyone for their support during “this tragic time of grieving.”

“The outpouring of love from everyone has been appreciated more than words can express, and we are truly in awe of how many people have reached out to us in time of need,” he said.

The family didn’t want to discuss Chambers but instead focus on Nash, according to their statement.

“Nash was a sweet, happy, smart little boy who had so much potential,” he said. “He was a joy to be around, and absolutely nothing can be done to make up for the loss we have suffered. We offer condolences to the other families who lost loved ones as well, and continue to pray for those fighting for their lives.”

Janelle Stecklein covers the Oklahoma Statehouse for CNHI’s newspapers and websites. Reach her at jstecklein@cnhi.com.