Gathering for Henry Treadway Fills Community Center

There was laughter and tears at the El Cerrito Community Center Sunday afternoon as a large number of people gathered to remember Henry Treadway, who .

The young man grew up in El Cerrito, became an Eagle Scout, graduated with honors from El Cerrito High School and touched many lives in a deep way, as was evident in the memories and reflections shared by friends and family members at the Sunday .

His AP chemistry teacher at El Cerrito High, Bob Fabini, said that while we usually don't recall the first time we meet someone, he can still remember the eager face and smile of Treadway the first time they met.

He recalled working with Treadway on his winning project for the science fair and the way that his student affected others around him.

"Quite simply," Fabini told the audience of more than 300 people who filled the Community Center's central meeting hall, "the value of Henry's life lies in the tiny daily gifts he gave us in his smile and kind words... I could count on Henry to brighten my day everytime he entered my classroom, and I know his classmates felt the same way. I'm sure that his family, his neighbors and his friends all felt this."

Several of his friends also recalled the Henry they knew and the times they shared, both silly and serious. 

"Henry taught me a lot about life and about myself," said Andrew Brewer, who met Treadway in kindergarten. "And I can honestly say I'm the person I am today because of Henry's impact on my life."

"Henry had a very unique, interesting way, a very passionate way of experiencing life...," Brewer said. "For those of us who know Henry, he was on a mission to change the world. Whether he knew it or not, every day he'd be out there helping people, whether it was conscious or not. Usually he wasn't even trying to help people. Just his way of interacting with you would brighten your day. I mean he wouldn't be trying to make you laugh. He wouldn't be trying to get you out of a bad mood. Just by being around him, your spirits would lift."

The last two speakers were his parents.

His mother, Diana Treadway, expressed heartfelt appreciation for the love and support from the community. "There is only one truth," she said, "And I think that truth is love."

His father Chris Treadway also expressed his thanks to "everyone for all the love we've received." 

Chris, who's editor of the The Journal newspaper and a journalist with the Contra Costa Times and affiliated papers, said he and Diana hope to establish a memorial bench in their son's honor at an El Cerrito park.

The program also included songs by the Threshhold Singers and a slideshow featuring photos of Henry Treadway throughout his life.

The gathering was tinged with an extra element of tragedy that went largely unspoken but was alluded to indirectly by a couple of the speakers. Henry Treadway's death was an apparent suicide, according to UC Berkeley police.

Fabini concluded his remarks by drawing an analogy to seeing a river late on a summer day when "the sunlight is reflecting towards you off the water."

"Imagine the light dancing, the moving water always gurgling, always changing," he said. "...Because of this, in the deep parts especially, the river bottom remains hidden from your view ... because of the brilliance of the dancing sunlight."