Gaudreau brothers honored in vigil with family, friends hosted by Gloucester Catholic High School
GLOUCESTER CITY, N.J. - It was an emotional night at Gloucester Catholic High School were Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau attended school, as folks gathered for a vigil and tribute with the brothers’ family, in advance of their funeral Monday.
It has been a week since the brothers were killed by a suspected drunk driver, while riding their bikes in Salem County.
"I was able to watch Johnny from his rookie season," Calgary, Alberta Canada resident Joel Elvres said. He was among the long line of mourners, friends and former teammates who turned out at the place where Johnny and Matt played their high school hockey careers.
NHL star Johnny Gaudreau, brother struck and killed while riding bikes in New Jersey
NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother were killed by a suspected drunk driver while riding bikes on a rural New Jersey road Thursday night.
It was a night of remembrance in the high school gym.
"When he left Calgary from Columbus, it was quite upsetting for us, but it really showed that he valued family over money cause he took less money to go to Columbus. Just shows what kind of character he was. Family first and that’s who he was," Elvres stated.
Friday night, the Gaudreau family arrived in a big, black passenger van to attend the memorial and be with members of the public for the first time since Johnny and Matt were killed. In talking with those who knew them, the bigger the horrific tragedy seems to be, where it seems like a bad dream nobody has woken up from.
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"It’s not a dream, it’s a nightmare. I’ve told people that if this was a movie, you wouldn’t believe it’s true," Johnny and Matt’s high school athletic director, Patrick Murphy, said. "They went on to play globally, but they never forgot their roots. They came back to Gloucester Catholic. They gave up their time, their talent and their treasures to give back to Gloucester Catholic."
Murphy continued, "Matty was a coach and John ran the golf tournament, which I helped with him for six years to give back, to help with scholarships for the school."
Principal Tom Iacovone said, "We did this tonight just to give people a chance to come together to mourn, to really give each other a hug and to hopefully start the healing process. It’s gonna be a long road for a lot of people, including myself, but we want to do everything we can to support the family and to just continue Johnny and Matt’s legacy. To keep it alive."