In June of 2009, Willy Shuman, 19, was killed in a car accident. The driver of the vehicle was drunk and Willy wasn't wearing a seatbelt.
Today, Willy lives on through The Willy Foundation, created by his mother, Jane Shuman, to promote proper seatbelt use and inspire community engagement.
Since Willy's untimely death, the foundation's primary focus has been "WAS," the popular "Wear a Seatbelt" initiative that shares its acronym with Willy's initials. But in the years since the foundation's inception, Shuman has branched out into the local community, hoping to posthumously influence the world in a way that she believes only her son could have.
One such community service branch is the Willy Shuman Leadership Club at John Adams Middle School, created in conjunction with the school's JROTC program.
Through the leadership club, the foundation has led an initiative to promote three principles: respect for self, respect for others and respect for community.
"We think those are three characteristics that really embody Willy," Shuman said.
The club is actually a full-fledged, graded class, though a nontraditional one. Shuman said it's led entirely by students from George Washington High School, some whom completed the John Adams class years prior.
Jeremy Burkhamer was one of the students who took the class while at John Adams and eventually led the class as a high school student at George Washington. For Burkhamer, the Willy Shuman Leadership Club gave him a sense of belonging, cultivated his attention to the world around him and had a strong influence on his academics.
This resulted in Burkhamer completing 1,901 community service hours in high school, the highest in George Washington history.
Now, Burkhamer is a sophomore public relations and political science double major at Marshall University and has served as the volunteer coordinator for the Capito for Senate campaign. Burkhamer attributes his interests and accomplishments to the class that more than lived up to the three principles it sought to teach.
"Everyone deserves a level of respect," he said. "What you do to others and what you do for others is pretty much your legacy and what you leave behind."
A legacy is what Shuman wants for her late son and what she hopes to achieve through the myriad branches of the foundation that she started after Willy's death. Through all of these community involvement activities, Shuman believes the foundation is living up to her son's potential.
"We wanted to do things in his name to try to make a difference in the world," she said, "because he would have made a difference."
This Sunday, the foundation will celebrate its seventh annual Willy Shuman Memorial Family Fun Night from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Charleston Tennis Club. Admission is $25. Last year, the foundation raised more than $30,000 for branches of The Willy Foundation, including the Willy Shuman Leadership Club.
Tennis is at the forefront of the celebration, commemorating Willy's love for the sport. At the celebration, there will be an all-age tennis round robin as well as tennis instructions for young children. Willy was an avid player and had been recruited to the U.S. Air Force Academy to play tennis. He was only four days from shipping out when the car accident occurred.
But being a tennis enthusiast isn't essential, Shuman said, and plenty of food and entertainment like face painting, a rock wall and a clown will be available for those in attendance.
Reach Jared Casto at jared.casto@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-4832 or follow @JaredCasto on Twitter.