A remembrance service held at Gainesville High School Friday night honored the life of Jeremy Medina. Medina passed away on December 11.
Medina, a pitcher and catcher on the school’s baseball team, was accidentally struck in the head by a bat while at practice on November 20 at Gainesville High School. He was in a coma for several weeks before he died.
The remembrance service, spoken in English and Spanish, presented a young man devoted to his Christian faith. Gainesville High School Athletic Director Adam Miller described Jeremy as a person who loved baseball, his teammates, his family, and his Jesus.
“The question to ask is ‘What would Jeremy want moving forward’?” Miller added. “The answer would be to stay strong, enjoy each day, and for his teammates to play hard and have fun.”
The Rev. Rose Johnson led those in attendance in a prayer. She said Jeremy’s greatest desire was to do whatever he could to help young people find their way to Christ.
WATCH Jeremy Medina Remembrance Ceremony
He had ‘an incredible ability to connect with people’
Many people spoke of Jeremy. His strong character, his leadership skills, his work ethic, and his contagious smile and personality. They talked of his attitude on and off the field, his integrity, and his devotion as a student, son, brother, and friend.
Jeremy also displayed those traits during his time as a student-athlete at Tallulah Falls School in Habersham County. He and his brother, David Medina, attended the private school in 2021 and 2022.
Justin Pollock was a first-year head coach at TFS when the Medina brothers enrolled there. He recently shared with Now Habersham his memories of the young Medina and the lasting impact he’s had on the TFS baseball team and community.
“Jeremy was just a freshman at the time but was able to earn a spot on our varsity roster as a pitcher. Most kids in his situation would have been shy or reserved, but Jeremy jumped right in like he had been with us the whole time,” Pollock recalls. “He always had an incredible ability to connect with people, especially on the baseball field.”
During the year and a half that Jeremy attended TFS, he played varsity baseball as a pitcher and catcher. His former coach remembers him as a “great player and a great competitor,” but more than anything, Pollock says, Jeremy Medina “was a great teammate.”
“The thing I will remember most about Jeremy is the joy and passion he brought to life every day,” he says. “He loved his teammates and loved seeing them succeed. We have so many memories and pictures of him smiling, laughing, and celebrating with his teammates.”
It is those memories that Jeremy’s family, coaches, teammates, and friends now cling to as they cope with the aftermath of his untimely and unexpected death.
“We were absolutely heartbroken when we heard of the accident and then of Jeremy’s passing a few weeks after,” says Pollock. “He was and always will be like a brother to his TFS teammates.”
Even after transferring to Gainesville High School, Jeremy kept up with his former coaches and teammates. He would occasionally visit them at Tallulah Falls, and last season, many of them took the opportunity to watch him play at his new school.
‘Leave it better than you found it’
The mark one leaves on a baseball team is often drawn by statisticians, but Jeremy’s mark runs deeper. Pollock, like so many others who have spoken publicly about the teen in the weeks since his fatal accident, talks of Jeremy’s strength of character and faith.
“One saying we use a lot in our program is ‘leave it better than you found it.’ Jeremy was truly a person who lived this out daily. Our school and our baseball program are better because of Jeremy. Our belief and our prayer is that Jeremy’s life will have an eternal impact,” Pollock says.
Just 17 years old when he died, Medina had already made a life-changing decision. He signed up to be an organ donor when he got his driver’s license. His family intended to honor his wish. Northeast Georgia Medical Center kept him on life support after doctors declared him brain-dead to give his grandmother time to travel to the States from outside the country.
An hour before she arrived, Jeremy’s heart stopped beating.
The shocking circumstances surrounding his death – a freak accident on a high school campus during practice for a game most consider safe – made international news. In the days leading up to his death, people from all over the world reached out to the Medina family. Many only learned of Jeremy’s life through his death. But for those fortunate enough to have trained and walked alongside him, his memory and impact will far outlast the fading headlines.
“We knew Jeremy as a young man of strong faith, and we saw him live it out daily. We believe that others will come to know Jesus because of the life Jeremy lived,” says Coach Pollock.
He adds, “Our team will honor Jeremy’s legacy every time we take the field. He will be in our hearts, and we will play with the joy and passion that he brought every day.”
