The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Family, community mourn loss of Meriden boy, 6
Saturday vigil remembers young rider killed in go-kart crash
MERIDEN — William Castillo pointed to a picture of six-year-old Adrian Warzecha surrounded by candles and said “that smile was him all the time.”
Castillo was known as Uncle Willie to the kids at the Atrium Condominiums and a neighbor of Adrian and his family.
On Saturday, Castillo joined about 60 people at the amphitheater on the Meriden Green to remember the boy who died Tuesday in a go-kart accident at Kronenberger Park. “I know the mother and the grandmother and Adrian,” Castillo said. “He was my buddy. I couldn’t stay away and not support them. Whenever I saw him, we both had smiles for each other.”
The Meriden community, some who didn’t even know Adrian or the family, braved the windy cold and rain to honor Adrian and to support his family. They hugged and consoled his mother Kali DickinsonWarzecha, grandmother Sally Warzecha, stepfather Steven Stolfi and siblings Julian Warzecha, 4, and Melina Stolfi, 2.
“I think it’s amazing,” Anita DiMauro said about the vigil organized by community members. “This is something that brings communities together. He was such a little jokester. It’s a shame it has to be for something like this. After COVID, I think people want to be more unified. It’s a little boy, how can you not?”
The event was organized by Leonela Torres, who didn’t know Adrian or the family, but like others in the community was devastated by the news. Torres brought candles and stuffed animals and although the weather didn’t cooperate, she had help keeping the candles lit. “It was just an idea to show support and love for the family,” Torres said. “We want to let his mother know us Meriden citizens are concerned and feel for her.”
The community support for Adrian has grown significantly since the accident took his life after he hit a swing gate at the park. His younger brother Julian, 4, who was riding with him was unharmed. As people gathered around the immediate family, there were sobs and wails of grief.
Mayor Kevin Scarpati has been in contact with Dickinson-Warzecha since the accident and offered his condolences to the family at the vigil. There were no speakers. Scarpati has been in touch with the city’s Council of Neighborhoods, which is planning a fund-raising event for the family. “Obviously, this is a very somber occasion,” Scarpati said. “The community coming out and sharing love and support is what we’re all about. It’s time to stand by a family that lost a child and loved one.”