Remembering King Shakel Wade, Friend to all

On Wednesday, we showed you the brave individuals who risked their lives attempting to save six-year-old King Shakel Wade after he’d fallen into a canal in Belize City. Sadly, by the time they found him, it was too late.  Tonight, we remember King for the lives he touched during his short time with his family. News Five’s Britney Gordon reports.

 

Britney Gordon, Reporting

It’s been two days since six-year-old King Shakel Wade tragically drowned after falling into a canal, and the community is still reeling from the shock of his sudden death. Family, friends, and even those who only met the lively boy briefly, are in deep mourning. King’s aunt, Sharon Wade, shares what made her nephew so beloved by everyone who knew him.

 

Sharon Wade, Aunt of Deceased

“Everybody like  the whole entire neighborhood around here because of who King is. And King that friend with big, literally big man round yah. Like when everybody here in the news, ney da like lee King? Noh mi lee friend King.  It’s a shock. Everybody is still shocked because they know King. They know how sweet he is. They know how energetic he is because he would come, you would see him run up and down the street. He would taunt the dogs, them, and have them chasing him. That’s his fun. That’s his way of playing.”

 

When Wade talks about the shock, it’s no exaggeration. Arenel Smith, one of several men who dived in the canal in an attempt to rescue King, explains that even as he was searching for the little boy, he was hoping someone would tell him there had been a mistake and that King had simply wandered off.

 

Arenel Smith, Rescue Volunteer

“I see somebody will push him or something. I say, no man. This can’t be King. I noh really. I start think now. I start ask people, where this young bwai deh? I start hope this young boy either bang the lane or something right now. Or come home or something. I deh right there. I just di think. I she no bwai. When we find  ah now, Eggy and ney bwai boy and ney lift ah up. I don’t know weh fi do. I also watch it. Like no man, can’t. Cya that happened right there so fast.”

 

It was King’s own cousin, Egbert Myers, who had the heartbreaking task of pulling his body to the surface. Egbert remembers seeing King’s smiling face every day as he passed by his usual hangout spot. Their bond was so strong that the moment he heard his little cousin was in trouble, he didn’t hesitate to rush to his aid.

 

Egbert Myers, Cousin of Deceased

“All I know that every day ih pass ya soh and we giva ah lee two dollars. When the man pass yah soh everyday when he go da school. Da the only thing, Cuz he da noh frm round ya like that. I hear ney tell me da who. I hear she da King soh I she I haffi go check. When iI hear da king. I haffi go.”

 

There is no doubt that the person who has felt the weight of King’s death the heaviest is his mother. Her sister explains that there is little one can say to comfort a grieving parent.

 

Sharon Wade

“She’s still in a state of shock, as is the family. To say how she feels, I don’t know. Yes, I’m a mother, as well as her. She has three kids, I have two. I can’t even wrap it around me to say, Oh, I know what you’re feeling, or I know what you’re going through. I cannot, up to this day, up to right now, we’re sitting here as a family together. I still don’t know what to say to my sister to comfort her like I stayed with her last night, and we were up. We haven’t slept as yet. And we, me and her were up and just talking. She cried, she stopped, we talked, we look back at memories and thing and I still don’t know what to tell her to make her feel better. There is no word.”

 

Comforting a grieving parent can feel overwhelming, but psychiatric nurse practitioner Amy Link emphasizes that building a strong support network is crucial for their healing journey.

 

Amy Link, Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner

“Someone that has lost an individual very close to them, especially a child, is very painful and can be very shocking because you don’t, you cannot prepare for that immense pain that follows. So when you do encounter that, it’s often best to leave the person in the support of a family and give them space to actually accept this is what happened.  This is reality. It cannot be changed. There will be fluctuating of emotions. Sadness, reflection of what life was, hoping they could have made changes.  And even at moments, have moments, where they don’t know if this is really. This has to be something that can be snapped out of. So in those times, the individual needs to be with family to support and accept what has happened.”

 

Link further explains that it is best to give the family space and respect their privacy, as they process their feelings. She encourages anyone experiencing difficulties to reach out to a loved one and seek professional help if necessary. Though King may no longer be with his family, the love he shared continues to shine brightly in the hearts of everyone who knew him.

 

Sharon Wade

“Everybody loved King. Like friends?  He had that, whether old, whether his age, whether it was family, King had that around this neighborhood because of who he was, because of his personality, because of how sweet he was.”

 

Britney Gordon for News Five.