Father pays tribute to Cole Adrian, six, at funeral in Kansas

Chris Adrian of McPherson, Kansas, paid tribute to his son Cole at a funeral service on Monday, held at McPherson Free Methodist church. The eulogy was livestreamed. Cole, six, was killed on 17 October when a pickup truck drove through a soccer game at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita.

Chris Adrian described Cole as an energetic, fun-loving child who loved life and captured the heart of everyone he met. Cole's mother is Natalie Adrian, Chris Adrian's wife.

The crash happened on Saturday, 17 October, at about 3:25 p.m., according to Fox 10. The pickup reportedly sped from a parking lot across the pitch where a game was under way. Cole and Nicholas Schafer, 35, both died at the scene, according to the City of Wichita. Schafer was a soccer coach and middle school teacher from McPherson. Both boys and men were McPherson residents, and Wichita police said Cole and Schafer were not related.

The city said ten other people were injured, with ages ranging from 5 to 68. Among them were girls aged five and nine, two boys aged eight, and a five-year-old boy.

The suspected driver is reportedly a 34-year-old woman from Garden City, Kansas. She reportedly had two of her own children in the vehicle and was arrested at the scene. She was released a day later without charges, pending further investigation. Wichita police chief Joe Sullivan issued a statement the day after the crash defending her release. The investigation includes toxicology testing and an examination of the driver's truck.

Youth soccer players in Wichita wore tribute shirts bearing the letters LLCA at a game days after Cole's death. Chris Adrian said the letters were meant to stand for laugh like Cole, love like Cole, live like Cole, and long live Cole.

Bethel College and Wichita Selection, a soccer club, also mourned the boy, KWCH reported on 23 October.