JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - The intersection where a 15-year-old was hit and killed on James Island may be getting renamed after him.
Gabriel Seagraves was riding his skateboard 10 years ago when a speeding car came around and hit him.
After several weeks of discussing ways to memorialize him, the town will take the next steps of changing the name of that intersection.
Because of the intersection's location, there was some concern from the community over what it should be named.
The cross at Secessionville Road and Kentwood Circle is where tragedy struck 10 years ago, but with the town's approval, this could soon be a reminder of so much more.
"I felt like I was 15 again, going to my best friend's funeral and seeing him in my coffin," a friend of Seagraves, Hannah Smith, said.
As one of his best friends, Smith said that when the town approved of renaming the road after Gabriel, there was a mix of emotions.
"It was really amazing to hear that. I think it can prevent or at least keep in mind in the community that it can happen, bad things can happen, and it's really important to a lot of people that nobody forgets," she said.
Councilman Darren Troy Mullinax said with this approval from the town, they are able to send it before the Charleston County Delegation to then lead to the final step at the Transportation Commission.
He said he's built a relationship with Seagraves' mother over the years, learning more about the person he was as someone who was involved in his communities.
"Then all those things were cut short by one senseless tragedy. So, hopefully this will, one, serve to honor him and also turn around and get people to think again about the sidewalks," Mullinax said.
When Gabriel Seagraves died just two days after his birthday, Smith said it shocked everyone.
She said this "means everything to everybody."
"Parents were shocked. They were scared to let their kids go out on the streets, walk from home to school, and it I think that it's a constant reminder," Smith said.
Now, Smith said she hopes this could lead to other safety measures in the future.