Ethan Moyer was an amazing brother, son, and friend. At 20 years old, he seemed to have it "all figured out." Most people search their whole lives for the meaning of life, Ethan know the meaning. Ethan was born a good person. He never judged anyone or put others down. He was encouraging and supportive. He loved life and found beauty in everything around him.
When Ethan was younger, he shared everything he had with anyone. He was extremely artistic. He loved drawing and playing with Legos. Every Christmas, even as he got older, Ethan would get a giant Lego set. He would sit all of Christmas day putting it together. We still have the Yoda with the moving head sitting by the fire place.
Ethan made friends easily. He was so friendly and accepting of anyone that people seemed to flock to him. As a kid, Ethan and his friends loved playing video games. They also took acting and drawing classes together.
Around 10 or 11, Ethan started acting out Chris Farley skits from SNL. These were not funny, they were hilarious. If you have ever seen the iconic "down by the river" Chris Farley skit, Ethan had this down. We would beg him to act them out and he would have us all rolling. I remember as he got older, begging him to do these skits and sometimes he would for me.
When Ethan was a teenager, he became extremely interested in music. He started taking drum lessons and was a natural. He would play everyday for hours. (I don't think our neighbors were too happy at first.) He improved rapidly. I remember really listening to him for the first time. He played Led Zeppelins's "Stairway to Heaven" for me and some friends. I was immediately blown away and remember breaking into a smile and thinking "Wow! This is my brother!" he was amazing to say the least and play this and almost everything else he played without sheet music. This is an impressive feat for any musician.
Ethan was a lover of all music and his interest in books and poetry emerged at this time. He loved classics such as The Outsiders and Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet. He also loved the Beatnik Generation; including Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. After Ethan passed away, we found out that he had written over 20 poems and had put them on a poetry website. They were well-written and deeply moving. As far as music goes, he loved everything; rock and roll, jazz, classical, country, and rap. His drum teacher, Sherrie Maricle, told me he know all the greats and hand an understanding of music way before his time. Ethan's dream was to go to Berklee and was working on an audition tape before he died. Sherrie told us that with his talent, he would have definitely gotten in. He was on his way to being a great musician and in my eyes, would have been a famous drummer.
Ethan had a huge heart. He loved all animals and was a member of PETA and a vegan since he was 15. He helped anyone in need and was known to give his friends' mom a ride when she needed one. The night that he passed away, 30 kids drove an hour to the hospital to say good-bye. They all told him they loved him and that he was their best friend. He was the "voice of reason" to them and talked to others down from fighting. If one of the kids in the group had a problem, Ethan was the first one they called. He had a tight-knit group of friends that still come around and always write messages on his Facebook wall. He taught them, my family, and so many others how to live; with peace and love in your heart. I'm Ethan's older sister, but find myself looking up to him. The core values in life came so easily to him, while so many of us struggle with them.
Two written pages do my brother no justice, his life was take far too soon. My family and I do take comfort knowing that he saved so many other lives and that he was living on in other people. His spirit is still strong. He taught hundreds of people how to live and showed them how to be a peaceful person. Whenever I see a peace sign, I can't help but think of Ethan. Through all of this, that has come to represent him in some way and I think that is a beautiful thing.
Rachel Moyer