London senior who passed away in April honored by little brother in a big way

As we previously reported , London high school senior and early founder of the London barbecue team, Connor Spivey, lost his life on April 25, 2024, due to sudden arrhythmic death syndrome .

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Connor was supposed to graduate on Friday, May 24. Instead, his 14-year-old brother walked the stage for him with waves of support. Connor Spivey's father, Gregory Spivey, spoke about what this would have meant for Connor.

"We thought it would be the best tribute for Connor — for his brother, to walk the stage, to show his love and support. Connor would be very proud of his little brother because his little brother was his best friend," Gregory Spivey said.

The Spivey family and London community have now raised just over $21,000 aiming to set up a perpetual London ISD scholarship fund in honor of their late son.

"[That] just shows the love the community has for Connor and knowing that it’s there to help the London graduates in the future," Gregory Spivey said.

While they are still about $30,000 shy of the $50,000 goal needed to set up that recurring scholarship, the Spivey family gave back to Connor's barbecue team by giving away five $1000 scholarships from their own money.

"[We hope] that it would be a tribute to Connor and the wonderful barbecue family that he had. We gave each of them a $1000 scholarship to let them know how much it meant to our family for them to be there for Connor," Gregory Spivey said.

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Connor's classmates and teachers also continue to find ways to keep his memory alive.

"They planted trees at the high school, and they’re going to put a plaque out there. The PTO is also going to be putting a bench there. There’s a pirate at the front door of the high school that we donated to the school and we’ve put a plaque on there and Connor’s name as well. It’s just such a tribute to the love the London community has for each other," Gregory Spivey said.

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The Spivey family is still raising money for the perpetual scholarship and tells KRIS 6 News that anyone who donates $1000 or more for the scholarship can stay at their villa in Italy for one week.

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