'Carteret Strong': Schools across the US share messages of hope for district impacted by Outer Banks plane crash

Through Camo Day tributes and the motto “Carteret Strong”, districts throughout the US are showing the Down East community it’s not facing this tragedy alone.

The social media feeds of North Carolina schools were a sea of camouflage on Friday.

Pictures showed students and staff smiling together in what resembled a theme day for homecoming week.

But the meaning behind those images runs far deeper.

“It really gives us some hope at a very dark moment in our lives,” East Carteret High School Principal Jay Westbrook said.

On Sunday, a small plane crashed off the coast of Carteret County killing all eight passengers onboard.

Among the deceased: the plane’s owner, Hunter Parks and Stephanie Fulcher, his girlfriend; the pilot, Ernest “Teen” Rawls and his son, Jeffrey; as well as four East Carteret High School students, Kole McInnis, Daily Shepard, Noah Styron, and Jake Taylor.

The crash has devastated the Down East community, which has pulled together through the motto “Carteret Strong.”

After three difficult days of helping his students mourn, East Carteret Principal Jay Westbrook came across something he didn’t expect.

“When I’d gotten home the other night, I started seeing other schools,” Westbrook said.

Multiple Carteret County schools were sending in their own pictures of students decked out in camo, honoring the four lost boys from East Carteret and their love of the outdoors.

The movement quickly spread to other districts nearby, including Greene County schools.

“Our kids live similarly,” Greene Central High School Principal Dr. Patrick Greene said. “We have kids that were scheduled to go on hunts just like these boys were, and they were instantly questioning, and had a fear for themselves.”

“So our heart goes out to them, and any support we can offer, we’re happy to show it,” Greene continued.

It hasn’t stopped there: districts as far as Pisgah High School in the mountains of North Carolina gathered for even more “Carteret Strong” pictures, and then the motto went national, with schools in states like Utah and Virginia sending their support.

“A lot of our students are outdoorsmen, they hunt, they fish, very similar type of child that was involved in the accident,” Brunswick Academy head of school Brittney Weidman said. “It was just one of those things that we felt like we needed to do.”

Although Down East has only just begun the long road to healing from this tragedy, they now have dozens of reminders they aren’t doing it on their own.

“Our community, families that’s been affected, and our school have been, it keeps us going, this type of support, and prayers and acts of kindness,” Westbrook said.