LAKE ASBURY, Fla – Dozens of students, parents, and neighbors gathered outside Lake Asbury Junior High School Sunday evening to remember Carson Farias, a 14-year-old boy killed while riding his electric dirt bike on Sandridge Road Thursday night.
Candles in hand and poster boards filled with handwritten messages for his mother, the community came together to grieve, share memories, and support one another.
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Carson’s mother, Megan Farias, confirmed her son’s identity in a Facebook post, writing: “There are no words that can truly express the pain our family is feeling right now. Carson was deeply loved and will forever remain in our hearts.”
Courtney Bailey, a parent whose daughter attends Lake Asbury Junior High, helped organize the vigil after reaching out to some of Carson’s friends.
“Whether you knew him or knew his family — just seeing all the rest of the kids grieve, it’s definitely tough,” Bailey said. “It’s been an emotional week for everybody.”
Bailey said she did not know Carson personally but felt compelled to create a space for his closest friends to come together.
“I didn’t know Carson personally, but my daughter goes to the junior high and they have a lot of mutual friends,” she said. “I just wanted to set something up for his close friends to write a message on a poster board to his mom.”
Two days after Carson’s death, a neighbor posted in a local Facebook group asking the community to show up at Lake Asbury Junior High to light candles, share memories, and support one another. The response online translated directly into the crowd that gathered Saturday evening.
“It just started as something for all his friends to come together — to show each other that they’re supported and that they’re loved,” Bailey said. “And it just grew within the community.”
The poster boards filled with messages will be delivered to Carson’s mother, Megan.
The gathering also became a rallying point for neighbors who have long raised concerns about safety along Sandridge Road — the dark, unlit stretch where Carson was killed.
“More than half the kids here are on e-bikes and e-scooters,” Bailey said. “So I feel like it’s really important to raise awareness.”
Bailey pointed to rapid residential growth in the area as a factor that has outpaced road infrastructure.
“A lot of people are constantly talking about the lights — we don’t have lights on this road,” she said. “We’ve got a lot of new communities and a lot of new houses going in. I don’t think anybody was fully prepared for the traffic that was about to hit Sandridge.”
With schools out for the summer and more families on the road, Bailey had a direct message for drivers.
“Slow down. Get off your phones. Be aware of your surroundings. Watch out for these kids,” she said.
What Happened
The Florida Highway Patrol says Carson had stopped his e-bike — described as a small electric dirt bike — in a westbound travel lane on an unlit stretch of Sandridge Road when a 16-year-old driver coming up behind him never saw him in time. The e-bike had no lights. Carson was not wearing a helmet.
The 16-year-old’s sedan struck the e-bike. Seconds later, a 17-year-old girl in an SUV rear-ended that sedan. Carson was thrown from the bike and died at the scene. The two other teen drivers were not injured.
The crash remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.
Funeral Services
Funeral services for Carson Farias are scheduled for Friday at 2:00 p.m. at Russell Funeral Home in Green Cove Springs.