At Skate Park, Friends Gather for Chris Mulligan

One day after 18-year-old Chris Mulligan passed away in a tragic incident on Route 25, friends gathered to remember him in the skate park at Dickinson.

A release sent to the community suggested residents come out to support, bringing baked goods and coffee. "We can't change the past but we CAN impact the way we act in the future. Choose to act with kindness instead of hate," said the release. The gathering, from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., drew dozens from around the community.

As the sun set Thursday evening, a group of those who had known him huddled in the cold and shared their memories of Chris. They described him as a writer, a thinker and a friend.

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Some words from some of his friends:

Kyle Robertson: "There were a few people who really took the time to know him -- like everybody here, and a few other people that went to school with him … If you ever took five minutes to just sit down and talk with him and get to know him, you'd realize he was a nice, funny kid."

Chris Daly: "He was a nice kid that welcomed everybody into his life. He was really friendly … He was my boy."

Faith Pereira: "It didn't matter who you were, or all the **** you did to him. He would go up to you and hug you and call you his best friend, no matter what.  Because he cares about everybody. He's so selfless." 

Zach Michalek: "I was always talking to him on Facebook. I never got to see him, but whenever he was here I always took the time to tell him that everything was eventually going to get better for him."

Emily Radatovich: "He had a lot of writer potential. He knew a lot with his words. He was really deep and knew a lot about books, even though it seemed like he wouldn't."

Hannah Ahmaritour: "If you actually talked to him, you could tell he was an absolute genius."

Andie Ruzziero: "No one actually took the time to get to know him … It took him dying for people to give him a chance. People who never even talked to him talked about how they used to judge him and they feel guilty because he's gone and they missed out."

Luke Sherwood: "Chris, I just wanna say, man … Wherever you are now, in the afterlife, I'm thinking about you … I knew you were a really good person, and you had potential to be a great person. Wherever you are, man, I'm thinking about you. Best of luck to you. And I hope you're going to make it out alright."