‘He really showed kindness to everyone’: Pancake fundraiser held for Lancaster family

NEWBERRY, Fla. (WCJB) - It’s been almost a week since the loss of Newberry High School senior Malachi Lancaster.

“He was a presence that you felt no matter like who you were at Newberry,” shared Newberry High School student Audrey Ellenburg.

The Newberry community is mourning the loss of high school senior Malachi Lancaster. Malachi was homecoming king, a football player, and the people who knew him say most importantly he was kind.

“He was just kind to everybody continuously. He was someone who really reciprocated like God’s love, and he really showed kindness to everyone there,” said Ellenburg.

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“That boy could light up a room seriously. You could ask his teachers, all his friends like he seriously just made such an impact on everybody,” shared Newberry High School student Audrey Ritter.

The Newberry Lions Club hosted a pancake breakfast with all proceeds going to the Lancaster family. Some people came for the food, but others just stopped by to make a donation.

“It really shows like the community that Newberry has,” Ellenburg said.

Some Newberry High School students say it was a quiet week. They tell TV20 that because the school is so small everyone is grieving.

“Our community feels like a family and it’s like we lost a member,” shared Newberry High School student Jazleyn Linares.

Linares continues to say, “Malachi really showed who he was as a good person, you know and he was something great. We didn’t need to wait and see until he lived his life because he did live his life, he did he really did.”

While they’re mourning, they’re also encouraging people to spend time together and share their fond memories of Malachi.

“I remember being in elementary school with him and he was little bit older than I was, but just like being on the playground we would like race each other and like he would always just hang out with everybody,” said Newberry High School Student Addie Mcelroy. “Just I felt like everybody really felt like loved and included whenever he was around anytime.”

Mcelroy goes on to say, “It’s just really beautiful to see everybody come together, so I think just like continuing to do that is just like I know right now is a time of mourning, but I think you really need the community right now, and like for everybody to just be together and just have like a fond memory of him I guess. Instead of you know just like you know sitting at home by yourself or something like get together with your friends and like celebrate him.”

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“There’s a saying going around, long live Malachi. Keep his memory alive, keep the kindness, and we’re really seeing that,” shared Ellenburg.

Through these memories its clear just how much of an impact Malachi made on the people around him, and the people who went to school with Malachi say his presence is still being felt, and he will never be forgotten.

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