It Is “Will Roberts Day” Across Alabama
Today is "Will Roberts Day" across the State of Alabama, as declared by Governor Kay Ivey. When issuing the proclamation, Ivey wrote, “Alabama is remembering Will as a brave young man whose courage inspired us all. God has called him home, where he is healed and with our Savior. I am proud to honor his life well-lived by officially proclaiming Will Roberts Day in the state of Alabama. He inspired me, and he inspired us all.”
Visitation for the family of Will Roberts is underway this morning at Shelton State Community College's Martin Campus Gymnasium (9500 Old Greensboro Rd.). The visitation period will be immediately followed by funeral services for the heroic 15-year-old who lost his valiant battle with a rare bone cancer last week. Burial will be in Wesley Chapel Cemetery (15882 Wesley Chapel Rd. in Ralph).
For those unable to attend in person, Magnolia Chapel Funeral Home in Northport will livestream the service. The livestream can be found at the bottom of his obituary page. Click on it prior to noon and the service will be available live and on recording afterward.
Will's obituary summed up the young man's life. "Will packed more life into fifteen years than many people do in a lifetime. He loved Jesus. He loved his family. He loved hunting before daylight, fishing until dark, getting muddy, making people laugh, and asking questions that usually left everyone else wondering how in the world he came up with them. He never met a stranger, and somehow people were drawn to him from the moment they met him. He had a smile that could change the atmosphere of a room and a heart that made everyone feel important."
Will leaves behind his parents, Jason and Brittney Roberts; his little sister, Charlie, his many grandparents, along with a large family and countless friends whose lives will forever carry pieces of him. Since last Thursday Will has been enjoying a reunion with his baby sister Darby Kate Roberts, who passed away May 26, 2013.
Once his battle with stage IV osteosarcoma became known, when he posted his feelings, desire for life and witness of faith on his mother's Facebook page, the son of Brittney and Jason Roberts became everybody's child.
Family, friends, neighbors and everyone who was inspired by Will say goodbye today. But today's services are not the end of Will Robert's legacy. He will live on in the hearts and memories of everyone who had ever met him or heard his witness.
