The family of a 16-year-old boy killed in a two-vehicle collision in Pouch Cove over the summer is raising money to pay for the driver’s legal fees.

The 17-year-old driver is currently facing dangerous driving charges as a result of the crash, but the family of 16-year-old Travis Wheaton, who died in the accident, is standing alongside him.

They have started a GoFundMe to pay for the boy’s legal fees, as he was a close friend of Wheaton’s who helped him through a rough time, and was “crucial” to the family’s healing process.

Wheaton’s uncle, Dr. Cory Thorne, says the way they see it, it could have been any one of the teens driving the car that night.

He says it could have easily been his nephew driving. He says the driver has made mistakes, but no legal action is going to reverse that and they wanted to support the driver in the same way they would have supported Wheaton were the situation reversed.

The family, according to Thorne, in no way blames the driver for what happened, and wishes to help him move forward in a way that is helpful to the community – specifically making sure supports for teenagers are in place.

He says since July, there has been little trauma support for any of the people involved.

He says the immediate goal was to cover the legal fees, but the fundraiser also aims to lay out the story of what Wheaton and the driver were dealing with in their life when the crash occurred.