Candlelight vigil honors Collin Penrod

By Brooke Pankonin

Grant Tribune-Sentinel

Hundreds gathered at South Platte High School in Big Springs on Monday night for a candlelight vigil to honor the life of a young man taken too soon. 

The gym was lit only by candles held by teachers, classmates, friends and family of Collin Alexander Penrod, and the only sounds were that of mourning. 

Collin, 18, son of John and Karrie Dolezal of Grant, would have been a senior at South Platte High School this fall. Before the family moved to Grant from Julesburg, Colorado more than four years ago, Collin attended South Platte Schools. He attended Perkins County Schools for a short time in eighth grade before returning to South Platte, riding to school with South Platte business and computer teacher Ken Bartels of Grant. 

Collin passed away on Saturday, July 1 as the result of an auto accident. 

A long line of his loved ones stood in the lobby of the school before the vigil, waiting to sign his football and basketball jerseys and band shirt. Atop the pink band shirt sat his tuba mouthpiece and sheet music to the song he was looking forward to playing in pep band this next school year, “Sweet Caroline.” 

South Platte Superintendent David Spencer gave students and Collin’s family members coins. He said there was nothing special about them, but he wanted them to serve as a reminder. 

“This coin reminds me that once we spend it, we never get it back,” said Spencer. “Collin spent his coin every day on other people.”

Spencer encouraged others to spend their coins wisely by choosing to make a difference, the way Collin made a difference in the lives of others every day. 

Remembering Collin

Collin’s big sister, Jillianne Gonzales said she, Collin and their little brother Clint are a tight knit group. Her husband, Mauricio, was also like a brother to Collin. 

Gonzales said Collin strived to make everyone around him laugh, and his attitude and smile were infectious. Collin’s girlfriend, Caroline Stanley, agreed, saying his contagious personality and radiant spirit drew others to him. 

Gonzales and Stanley both talked about Collin’s work ethic. He was very hard-working, going full-force into everything and never doing anything halfheartedly, but always giving 110 percent. 

Gonzales said he loved sports and his future plans included going to college to major in sports medicine and sports therapy. 

“He loved his community and he loved his girlfriend, Caroline,” said Gonzales. “All he ever wanted was to help people and make them feel happy. I can’t say enough that would ever describe how wonderful he was.” 

Stanley said he was a great role model for young children, including her two younger brothers who looked up to him. 

“His heart was so big. When he loved something or someone, he loved it with his whole body,” she said. “I loved him so, so much, and he loved me, too.”

Friends of Collin’s said he was like a brother to them. 

“He had my back and I had his. He will always have my back and he will always be with me,” said Austen Jaeger. 

Jason Farrier said Collin was the torch that lit everyone’s fire, putting others’ accomplishments before his own. 

“He carried the world and was on top of it at the same time, said Farrier. “There isn’t a doubt in my body that he was needed in a greater place.”

Teachers Praise Collin 

Alyson Carlson of Grant, who teaches art at South Platte, said Collin was wise, kind, honest and mature beyond his years. She could always depend on him, not only to help, but to do it willingly and with a smile on his face, usually without even needing to be asked. “When he saw the need, he was there.”

Not only did Carlson know Collin through school, but he was also her neighbor in rural Grant. She would often see him drive by “waving and smiling bigger than life,” and he would sometimes stop by just to visit. 

“Collin was a light in my day...every single day. He was just a super special kid who touched so many lives. I will always have the fondest memories of him,” said Carlson.

He had the same effect on many of the other faculty and staff members at South Platte. 

Candy Spady, his speech coach, said Collin checked in with her every single day just to see how her day was going. She said he was a leader in the classroom and out, working hard at everything he did and going out of his way to help. 

Although out of his character, he competed in serious prose for speech, and loved every minute of it. 

“He’s the only kid I know who could come out of a serious round with a smile on his face,” said Spady. “He was a light, and people just seemed to gravitate towards him.”

 Jody Viola, Collin’s band teacher, said he was a great tuba player and was planning to audition for All-State Band this fall. Like his other teachers, Viola said Collin was the first to volunteer if anyone needed help. On concert days, she would often times arrive at school to find Collin already setting up the risers. 

“He lived to make others’ lives better and happier. His memory will live on in each of us.” 

Cameron Miller, Collin’s football coach, teacher and FFA advisor, said he was a great kid to coach who didn’t make excuses and normally answered with “yes sir” even if he disagreed. 

“Collin was a good student and pushed other teammates to keep their grades up throughout the school year. He cared for others, both young and old, and was respectful to everyone he was around,” said Miller. 

South Platte Principal Seth Ford said Collin was involved in everything and brought a positive energy and work ethic to everything he did. Not surprisingly, he also said that Collin was the first to jump in to do whatever needed to be accomplished. 

“He was a young man with great ambition and he was going to make an incredible impact on the world. He had an infectious smile that could brighten up any room, and he always had a positive outlook on life.

“It was a privilege to know Collin, and he made an enormous impact on all of us for the relatively short time we had the opportunity to know him. We all should strive to live our lives like Collin. He was a gentle giant who was a loyal friend to his peers, a hard worker, and just truly cared for everyone who crossed his path.”

 Tragedy

Collin had started a new job on Friday, June 30, working with Dora Gregory of Haxtun, Colo., inspecting wheat fields for certified wheat seed. 

At 6:50 p.m. on Saturday, July 1, Collin was the passenger in the 2012 Chevy Silverado pickup Gregory, 63, was driving eastbound on Sedgwick County Road 20, approximately six miles south of Julesburg. 

According to Sgt. Rob Madden of the Colorado State Patrol, Gregory failed to stop at the stop sign, and her pickup was hit on the passenger side by David Klinkhammer, 54, of Kimball, who was northbound on Colorado Highway 385 in a 2010 Chevy Silverado pickup.

All three were transported to Sedgwick County Memorial Hospital in Julesburg.

Collin was pronounced dead on arrival. Gregory suffered serious injuries and was kept overnight, and Klinkhammer was treated for minor injuries.

Memorial Services

A celebration of life service will be held Saturday, July 8, at 10:30 a.m. at the South Platte High School in Big Springs. 

Memorials can be made in Collin’s name in lieu of flowers to the South Platte School Athletic Fund, c/o Austin-Tennant Funeral Home, P.O. Box 24, Julesburg, CO 80737. 

Austin-Tennant Funeral Home of Julesburg has been entrusted with arrangements.