The Aragon community suffered a loss when senior Tyler Neeley passed away unexpectedly on Monday, Jan. 13.
For the students and faculty at Aragon, Tyler was many things. To some, he was a celebrated athlete on Aragon’s varsity football and track and field teams. To others, he was a reliable companion who would do anything for a friend. To many, Tyler was a big brother who demonstrated the dedication and discipline necessary to become a leader.
To junior Cj Alipate and many others, Tyler was “like a big teddy bear.”
Alipate met him in elementary school. “I guess we both started to like each other because we were both really, really big … I used to ask him where everything was, and I looked up to him as an older brother,” he said.
Senior Giovanni Moreno was one of Tyler’s closest friends. His description of Tyler also echoes that of many others who knew him: “He’s a prankster. He messes with everyone. Biggest heart, though. He’s the group’s heart, makes everybody smile, but he does mess with everybody, which is the thing. Funny, funny kid.”
Athletic director and varsity football coach Steve Sell also witnessed this “heart” during Tyler’s four years on the football team. “He cared deeply about the team and he cared deeply about how well the team did … He was very, very well-liked. He was very nice to people. That goes a long way. When you’re nice to people and you care about the team and you care about winning, your teammates are going to like you,” Sell said.
Sell adds, “He was a free-spirited, live for the moment kid who genuinely enjoyed his time with his friends on campus. And he treasured his friendships above all else. He was a helpful person; he was unselfish and would bend over backwards to help somebody.”
Those closest to Tyler also witnessed his considerable growth between junior and senior year. Moreno said, “As long as I’ve known him for, he’s been insecure about his weight and stuff like that, [but] he started looking skinny, dropped like 60, 70 pounds.”
Sell added, “As a junior he had a hard time finishing the sprints. As a senior, I don’t think he ever came up short in those timed sprints. He was there, he was at the front. He grew a lot … He got in better shape and became a leader … His work ethic really improved. He was at the front of the line with the jumping jacks and people looked at him as a leader because he was a three-year varsity player … You could point to him and say, ‘that’s how you’re supposed to do this.’”
Tyler also threw shot put and discus on the track and field team. Junior Tupou Unga threw with Tyler. She said, “He was really good … And he taught me and everyone else. He was a helper, he knew his stuff. I was new to the team last year and he taught me and helped me out. There was never a dull moment with him. It was always fun, he was always cracking jokes.”
Tyler’s penchant for making his friends laugh will remain one of his most memorable qualities. Moreno recalls, “When we first started hanging out—when the whole group kind of assembled—this was eighth grade, and knowing how big he was, he sat on my little brother’s bed and broke it. And he’s done that with a couple friends actually, but we went to Great America that night, and Benihana’s for his birthday, and he started crying listening to Adele and telling us how much he loved us. And he was listening to his earphones and it was hella funny.”
