Family, Community Mourn Kasey King

More than 200 people attended a candle light vigil Thursday night in memory of six-year-old Kasey King, the Nashport Elementary student who was killed in a school bus accident Wednesday morning.

Kasey’s step-father Joe Thomas attended the vigil to thank the community for its support on behalf of his family and wife, Randi.

"She’s still too heartbroken to come out so I came out to represent the family and it just means a great deal. It means the world to us. The kid’s friends from school, the teachers from school, people have called the house and everything just being supportive and it just means a great deal to us," says Thomas.

Thomas says his wife wants Ohio legislators to pass the bill requiring seat belts on all new and refurbished school buses beginning in 2014.

"She’s pushing for the Ohio school bus seat belt to be passed and that her wishes is that the bill be called Kasey’s bill in memory of Kasey King," he says.

Thomas says NBA player and Zanesville native Kevin Martin has contacted the family and pledged his support for the bill. Martin has also offered to pay for King’s funeral expenses.

People all across the community are coming together to help the family. Fellow classmates of Randi Thomas’ at Zane State College organized Thursday’s event, because they say Thomas is a children’s advocate. They say she has ten children and has gone as far as Nevada to adopt.

"You can’t imagine but you try to put yourself in her position of losing a child. A dear, sweet, precious child and knowing what a child advocate Randi is you just have to do something," says Heidi Pritchard, organizer.

At Thursday’s event they collected monetary donations, food and other items to help make the family’s grieving process easier.