Have you paid attention to the recent news in Gainesville? If you haven’t, you should. When I saw
the Hughes family photo, I thought about the dozens of times that I have posed for similar photos. You
have, too. And you probably agree that nothing, absolutely nothing, is more precious than family.
The Hughes’ family picture was taken before March 6. The parents and their two sons were all smiles.
But if the photo was taken today, someone would be missing. Jason Hughes, a beloved husband and
father, was killed.
Why?
What started out as a harmless prank ended in tragedy.
How?
At North Hall High School, there is a junior-senior tradition to roll people’s yards with toilet paper
(TP). Seems it’s a competition to see who can roll the most yards without getting caught.
Jason Hughes, a 40-year-old math teacher and coach, knew his yard was a TP target. He had waited for
the prank to happen and rushed outside to greet the students. It was supposed to be a fun stunt,
something to laugh about on Saturday morning.
But in the dash to “catch” the prankers, the popular teacher slipped and fell into the path of one of
the escaping vehicles. The students stopped to give Jason Hughes first aid until an ambulance with
flashing red lights arrived.
Blue lights came, too. Five 18-year-olds were hauled to jail. The truck’s driver faced charges of
first-degree vehicular homicide and reckless driving. The other four pranksters were charged with
criminal trespassing and littering on private property.
Gainesville is miles away. But every one of us should feel the community’s sadness and heartache.
Such a senseless death. Why, why, why?
This could have played out in any of our towns. And what happened in Hall County can’t be called
back. But it can be a teachable moment. A warning about how what seemed like a good idea at the time
can quickly turn into horror.
Despite my silver hair, believe it or not, I was once a teenager. I hope that our grandchildren
didn’t inherit too many of my prankster/practical joker genes. Thinking back 60 years, I shudder at the
foolish things my friends and I did. If we had thought about it, we would have probably rolled a mile or
two of TP.
Jason’s widow, Laura, is a math teacher at North Hall. She loves those five students, just as her
husband did. And what she has done is a teachable moment in forgiveness.
She successfully pleaded with the prosecutor to drop all charges against the pranksters. The
family’s statement read, “Our family is determined to prevent a separate tragedy, ruining the lives of
these students. This would be counter to Jason’s lifelong dedication of investing in the lives of these
children.”
I don’t know Laura Hughes. But I know that she is a strong woman of faith. She has the heart and
love to provide this powerful testimony of forgiveness.
There is no way to undo the horror that has happened.
But we can do a minimum of these things:
1. Pray for the Hughes family.
2. Pray Jason Hughes’ legacy will remain “alive.”
3. Pray for the teenagers and their families.
4. Pray this will be a “teachable” lesson for all ages.
Amen.
dnesmith@cninewspapers.com