NEPHI, Utah -- The small community of Nephi continues to deal with a heartbreaking loss.
On Friday, during the parade on Main Street, 11 year old Grace Eyre came off a float. The driver didn't see her and kept going at a slow speed. Grace was run over and killed.
"Grace was very quiet until someone, she saw someone struggling or someone being picked on and then she was brave," said Brandi Webster, Grace's second grade teacher and currently an administrator at Red Hills Elementary.
"I remember this one time someone said, 'Grace, slow down,'" said Webster. "She said, I don't know how to go slow."
"Every time she would come into Waspfit, she would give me a hug. Not every kid does that," said Shane Blackett, Grace's coach. Waspfit is a kid's version of crossfit, named for the Juab High Wasps. Grace had been part of the program for four years.
Blackett saw Grace the morning of her death. He was standing near the beginning of the parade route. He called out to her. They exchanged a wave and a smile. A half hour later, tragedy struck.
"I saw the ambulance drive by not knowing that it was her," said Blackett.
In the small town, it didn't take long for people to discover Grace had been killed. It also didn't take long for them to react.
"A little 2nd grader had the bucket idea, so it was her idea to pass these buckets around at the rodeo," said Webster, holding up a white five gallon bucket emblazoned with 'Give For Grace.' The buckets were passed around Saturday night at the Ute Stampede. In an hour, $14,000 was put in the buckets, another $6,000 was added at another parade.
At Waspfit the 'Grace Strong' campaign has begun, with t-shirts to help keep Grace's legacy alive Also, an account to support the family has been set up at Wells Fargo banks and a GoFundMe page had topped $15,000 by Monday night
