Community Gathers To Honor Cleveland Teen Killed In Crash

A Green Country community honored a teenager who died driving on an icy road.

Sixteen-year-old Brock Norton crashed his truck along Highway 412 near Sand Springs Friday night. Those in his hometown are still coming to grips with the news.

About 200 people showed up to a candlelight vigil and bonfire on Monday. Most of them were classmates of Norton's, and they tried lighten the mood by sharing funny stories about a charismatic kid. His friends said Norton was full of kindness, always polite and they really stressed that he didn't like to see people cry.

Candles were flickering symbols of a boy everyone in Cleveland seemed to know and love.

"He loved the attention and the attention loved him," Norton's dad, Todd Norton said.

Brock Norton, or Brocko as he was known to everyone in town, had a way with people, and there was no one who knew that better than his big brother Riley.

"At 16 years old, he has made more of an impact on some people than some people have in a lifetime. And to have that type of kid as a little brother is nothing short of an honor," Riley said.

Norton was a baseball player with dreams of playing in the Big Leagues. He liked to ride horses. And he had a one of those infectious personalities.

Maybe that had something to do with what his dad calls "the Brocko grin."

"I don't know that the kid ever had a bad day. He'd wake up with a smile on his face and go to sleep with a smile on his face," Todd Norton said.

Norton's love for people didn't end in death, though. His dad says Norton has now touched 147 strangers through organ donations.

"That's the spirit of Brocko. Even beyond the grave, he's reaching out touching lives and trying to help people. That was just him," Todd said.

It's a spirit that now lives on in the hearts of those who were fortunate to know Norton. A spirit that will burn more brightly than any flame could carry.

A mass service will be held at the Holy Family Cathedral in Tulsa at 10 a.m. Friday, then a community memorial service will be held the Cleveland Event Center at 2 p.m. that same day.