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Updated: December 20, 2024 @ 4:17 am
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Freddy Espinal
Freddy Espinal
PEABODY — The family of Peabody Veterans Memorial High School student Freddy Espinal has created a scholarship in his memory after he died unexpectedly this fall.
The Freddy Espinal Scholarship will be awarded during PVMHS’s annual convocation and scholarship night on the night before graduation to a PVMHS senior athlete who is pursuing a degree in criminal justice and demonstrates the qualities, values and unrealized potential of Espinal, according to his family.
“We honor the memory of a bright, beautiful soul who left this world far too soon,” his family wrote in a statement. “In his short time with us, he brought so much love, joy and light into the lives of everyone around him.
“His laughter was infectious, his smile lit up the darkest days and his spirit will forever live on in our hearts. The world is a little dimmer without him, but the love and legacy he left behind will always shine bright.”
Espinal died from a medical emergency during a Sept. 22 wrestling practice. He was 17.
He was a member of the joint PVMHS and Saugus High School wrestling team and the Red Roots Wrestling Club in North Reading. He had also previously played youth football in Peabody and was on the PVMHS football team as a freshman and sophomore.
Espinal’s wrestling teammates honored him at the start of a match against Marblehead/Swampscott at Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse Wednesday night. Following the tradition of a wrestler leaving their boots on the mat at the end of their last match, Peabody and Saugus captains did the same with Espinal’s before many of his family members and the North Shore wrestling community.
Wrestling was one of Espinal’s greatest joys. “His last day was spent doing what he truly loved,” his family said.
Espinal was a junior at PVMHS who was “caring and compassionate with his family, teammates and friends,” his family said.
He volunteered as a camp counselor at the Essex County Summer Day Camp, a camp for North Shore kids entering fifth grade that’s put on by the Essex County District Attorney’s Office, which made him want to pursue a career in criminal justice following graduation.
“His positivity, even on the worst day, inspired those around him,” his family said. “Through sports and academics, he developed the dedication and the patience to chase his dreams.”
Donations to the scholarship can be made by sending money to the Venmo account @Freddy-Espinal-Scholarship or by sending a check to PVMHS made out to the school with “Freddy Espinal Scholarship” in the note line.
Contact Caroline Enos at CEnos@northofboston.com
PEABODY — It’s a time honored tradition that a wrestler leaves his boots in the circle in the middle of the mat when he’s finished his last match.
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