A new tree now stands in Sherwood Park honoring a former Plainwell High School student who died in a car crash late last year.
The memorial for Evan Haffner was celebrated Friday, April 29, as part of Plainwell’s recognition of Arbor Day.
The tree and a plaque honoring Haffner are near the sidewalk next to the basketball courts.
Haffner’s mother Debra Ehn of Allegan said the park was a fitting location for the memorial.
“It was pretty neat,” Ehn said. “I think the city is great for letting us have a tree there.
“Our family does a lot of events there. It’s almost like Evan can be there, too, now. He had gone to a lot of events there, including his daughter’s first birthday.
“It will be nice to see his tree every time we go.”
Ehn, herself a 1989 Plainwell graduate, said her son died in the early morning hours of Dec. 8 on 124th Avenue near Hopkins. Haffner, 22, had been on his way to pick up his fiancée, Amanda Pope, from work when he missed a curve in the road. Ehn said the vehicle rolled end over end before hitting a tree.
The city gave away seedlings of gray dogwoods at the Arbor Day ceremony, and Ehn said she plans on planting hers at home to further remember her son.
His grandmother, Shirley VanDyk, said, Haffner—who was in Plainwell High School’s Class of 2012 and did not graduate but later earned his GED—was a great young man.
“He was just starting to get his life together,” VanDyk said. “He left a 2-year-old daughter (Brooklynn)—absolutely worshipped the ground she walked on. He took care of her all the time.”
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