VILLAS – Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Dec. 10 at Evoy Funeral Home on Bayshore Road, North Cape May, for a 17-year-old Lower Cape May Regional (LCMR) High School senior who was described as a “bright light,” “solid friend” and a “sunny kid who didn’t like his photo to be taken” by school staff, friends and family members.
Jamie Klecz, of Villas, died from injuries Dec. 4 following a car accident on Fulling Mill Road Dec. 3. He was the only son of Jamie Klecz (also known as Jim) and was the youngest sibling with four sisters; his mother died about 12 years ago, according to family members.
Lower Township Police are still investigating the cause of the accident. According to the police, drugs and alcohol are not being looked at in terms of the cause of the crash, pending toxicology tests.
Upon his death, Klecz’s organs were donated to the Gift of Life Donor Program, according to his family.
“He was always a bright light,” said Superintendent Christopher Kobik of the Lower Cape May Regional School District, as he recalled seeing Klecz and his friends during his morning routine of greeting students at the high school. “There was always light morning banter between Jamie and his friends and me.”
Kobik called Klecz’s death a “real tragedy” and said the school community would “help the students and families get through this.
“We are sensitive to the real sense of loss the students are feeling,” he said, “and will help work through this with them. We were unofficially notified Sunday (Dec. 4) about the accident, and the principal called the staff prepping them for Monday (Dec. 5). In addition, our counseling services, guidance and child study teams, including our school-based crisis team, were prepped to help the students and staff. There are no best practices when dealing with a tragedy like this, so we follow the recommendations from agencies who deal with this more often.”
Kobik said the police department released Klecz’s name publicly about 10 a.m. Dec. 5. Students and others have been critical on social media of the school district not having a moment of silence Dec. 5 to remember Klecz.
“We didn’t feel it was appropriate to do anything until the public had been notified and parents had been contacted about the tragedy,” Kobik said. “It is not our place to make this announcement. After it had been announced, we did have students come to the office demanding a moment of silence. I did not think it was appropriate in the middle of the school day; we had not spoken with the family, we needed to notify parents about what was happening at school. We are dealing with kids here; we want to be sure they have the support they need.”
On Dec. 6, Klecz’s death was announced and a moment of silence was held as part of the morning announcements by Principal Lawrence Ziemba. Despite this, a group of students, many wearing blue and white in honor of Klecz’s love of the Dallas Cowboys, walked out of the school in “protest of the school’s lax action; there were no grief services in place Monday (Dec. 5),” according to Gina Klecz, of Mantua, a cousin of Jamie Klecz.
“If the students feel they need to do this as part of the grieving process than they need to do this,” Kobik said. “After the walk-out, the students came to the cafeteria to have conversations with staff and each other. By 10 a.m., the students were either back in class, went home with parent notification, or were working with others to help through their duress. We’ve spent a lot of time talking with the students; everyone deals and reacts to tragedy differently so we are trying to be as compassionate as possible.”
“Every child that walks the halls is important,” said Gina Klecz. “It is our responsibility in the time we live in to show compassion. Allow students to express regret for a lost friend and a smiling face in the hall. The children felt unheard and disregarded and still did the walk-out because they felt it was a day late.”
Gina Klecz said Jamie Klecz liked dirt biking, skateboarding, and the Dallas Cowboys. She remembered how her cousin would dress as Batman and play with her son, who is two years older.
“They were just little kids not so long ago,” she said. “It’s hard to think about him today. He always was smiling; he was a sunny kid who didn’t like his photo taken.”
Gina Klecz said Jamie Klecz’s uncle had bought him a car a couple days prior to the accident. She noted they did not know where he was traveling to when the accident occurred. Investigators said Klecz was driving east in a 1995 black two-door Nissan 200 SX on Fulling Mill Road when he crossed the center line into the oncoming lane. He left the road, sideswiped a tree and crashed head-on into another tree, police said.
Emergency crews found Klecz unconscious with serious injuries when they responded at 8:35 p.m. He died early Sunday evening (Dec. 4) after being airlifted to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, Atlantic City.
A memorial has been established at the site of the crash, where orange paint marks where the car went off the road and hit the trees. “He was my friend, a real solid friend,” said Cody Walker, of Villas, as he stared solemnly at the items marking the memorial. “I lived near him; we’ve been friends since grade school.”
Walker, who graduated in 2013, echoed sentiments that the accident was a “tragedy,” saying “Jamie was a great kid. He was always active and loved riding his dirt bike all over. I just can’t believe this.”
A green shirt at the memorial from the St. Baldrick’s Foundation was placed there, according to Gina Klecz, because Jamie Klecz was a supporter of the group. “He shaved his head for the cause.
“All he wanted was to graduate and get his diploma,” she added.
An online petition was started by classmates urging the school district to give Klecz his diploma. As of Dec. 6, more than 330 signatures were on the petition at https://www.gopetition.com/petitions/jamies-high-school-diploma.html.
“We’ll have to see what we can do,” said Kobik, when asked if the school district would grant the diploma. “The system is bigger than our school.”
Klecz’s father was a long-time culinarian at Rio Station, Rio Grande, according to Gina Klecz. Staff there is collecting funds during a month-long collection for the family. Some of Jamie Klecz’s favorite food items will be sold at the restaurant for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and the proceeds from those items will be donated to the family.
In addition, Kellie Brittingham, of Woodbine, started a GoFundMe campaign to help her uncle, Jim, pay for Jamie Klecz’s funeral arrangements. Funds are being sent directly to the funeral home; donations can be given at https://www.gofundme.com/burial-for-jaime-klecz?ssid=830715454&pos=1.
To contact Karen Knight, email kknight@cmcherald.com.
Cape May – Governor Murphy says he doesn't know anything about the drones and doesn't know what they are doing but he does know that they are not dangerous. Does anyone feel better now?
