'Help Me Bury My Son': Former Star School Athlete Dies Suddenly

GREENPORT, NY — The Greenport community is mourning the loss of a former star high school athlete remembered not just for his prowess on the field but for his humility and heart.

A GoFundMe page, "Please Help Me Bury My Son!" was created by Talyea Bagley.

"On August 31, my son Gerald Crenshaw was called home," she wrote. "He was a loving, caring, talented man. Please, just help me bury my son."

The community was shocked to learn that Gerald, who broke records during his time at Greenport High School, had died.

Crenshaw's longtime mentor and friend, football coach Fred Marienfeld, spoke with Patch about what Gerald meant to him, and to so many.

Marienfeld said he learned Wednesday morning that Gerald had died. "I'm in complete shock," he said.

Gerald, who graduated in 2002, played varsity football at Greenport High School for five years, beginning when he was just 13 and in eighth grade, Marienfeld said.

"As someone who has coached football for 30 years, I never came across anyone as gifted or talented as this kid," he said. "Some coaches go their whole careers and never get a kid like this. There wasn't anything he couldn't do."

Gerald, he said, amassed scores of accolades: He set two records, one as the all-time Suffolk County leading rusher, with 5,481 yards — and one for the most touchdowns ever scored by a player; he scored 81 touchdowns in eight games. "He was multi-talented and gifted," he said. "He ran more yards than any player, ever, and he was from little Greenport. It was unbelievable."

But reflecting on Gerald, Marienfeld said he did not want to just "rehash his glory days." While he was a stellar athlete in many sports including baseball, as well, he said: "He was an even better kid. If you saw him in the hall, he was always just beaming. He had that infectious smile. He brightened a room. He was just so happy go lucky, always joking around. Everyone in the room loved him, looked up to him. There wasn't a malicious bone in his body."

Gerald, he said, despite his incredible talents, was incredibly humble. When the game was over and crowds would come to congratulate him on a big touchdown, he'd be the first to go give another player a high five or a pat on the back, telling them how well they'd done, Marienfeld said. "He wanted to be sure everyone got to shine," he said.

Even on the days when Marienfeld would reward members of the team with lunch at Sterlington Deli in Greenport, if Gerald won the honor too often, he'd tell his coach to let some of the other boys on the team have the congratulatory lunch, instead. "He wanted to see other kids get recognition," Marienfeld said.

So great was his ability that he was named quarterback of the varsity football team at just 14, Marienfeld said. "Some said, 'Hey, coach, that kid's small. He's a freshman, just 14. You're going to trust him to be the leader of year team?' But once they saw him, they were dumbfounded."

Gerald, he said, took the game seriously, watching tapes of opposing teams and suggesting ideas and strategies. Despite being just 14, he had "vision, an ability to see things develop," Marienfeld said. "He was in sync with his teammates."

Even in a huddle, the youngest boy on the field, his teammates all looked up to him, Marienfeld said. "They knew that on any given play, he was capable of going all the way to the end zone with a touchdown."

But it wasn't just talent, Marienfeld said. It was that natural ability, coupled with a tremendous work ethic and a truly humble and caring heart that made Crenshaw a legend.

"There's one thing I really want people to understand about him: He was beloved by his coaches, his teammates, the community," Marienfeld said.

As a coach, Marienfeld said Crenshaw was a "once-in-a-lifetime player and athlete." He was also funny, gregarious, and not intimidated by older players from bigger schools.

But the bond, he said, ran far deeper: "I loved that kid," Marienfeld, who has three children of his own. "I considered that kid my son. I'm a better person because he made everyone around him better."

Since the news broke, Marienfeld said he has been inundated with calls and texts, emails and heartbreak. "Everyone is devastated," he said. "They are saying things like, 'This one is going to hurt for awhile.' You run across people like Gerald only rarely in your lifetime. He was an extraordinary athlete in a humble person's body. He has physical speed and strength but he had the work ethic that went with it. When you put those together, the sky is the limit, and that's what happened with Gerald."

Throughout his athletic career, Gerald led his team to the playoffs, was named All County, All Leagues, and earned many other titles — but most of all, he left a lifetime of memories with his caring heart.

"I'm going to miss this kid terribly," Marienfeld said. "I'm heartbroken. We are all in disbelief, in shock."

Just last year, Marienfeld ran into Gerald. "He said, 'Hey, Coach, do you have any old football tapes you can spare? I wouldn't mind watching the old games from the glory days.'"

Marienfeld put the tapes together and they and some other teammates watched the games, together, one last time. "He must have sent me 10 'thank you' texts," he said.

Gerald's mother has seen her share of heartbreak, Marienfeld said; she lost her husband recently and Gerald's older brother.

Marienfeld, too, is rocked by the loss. "My wife has asked me, 'Are you okay?' No, I am not. Since I found out, I've been walking in a haze. This is such a loss. If you knew this kid, you would have loved him. Everyone loved him. It's a devastating loss."

Gerald's friend and former football teammate Matthew Conneely also shared his grief: "He was the greatest athlete I've ever met in my life," he said. "He made all of us better at football and basketball because his athletic skills were so much more advanced than all of ours."

In P.A.L. football, each year their team, the Peconic Panthers were the Class A Suffolk County Champions, "mainly due to his unbelievable talents," he said. "Sometimes when he would run the ball, I couldn't help but just stop blocking my defender, and just watch greatness unfold," he said. "He would sometimes run back and forth with the entire defense chasing him from sideline to sideline then he would turn on the jets and run straight down the field for a touchdown."

Gerald, Matthew said, "was good at every single sport. He was a great baseball player, as well, and even was a naturally good soccer player during our recess soccer games. He also was an amazing rollerblader. He was loved so much by our entire grade in Southold because his personality was a one of a kind, and we missed him a lot when his family moved to Greenport."

The two spent a lot of time with after high school, as well; the last time they spoke was a few years ago when Gerald reached out to Matthew after he'd created the Greenport football alumni Facebook page; he posted three videos and several pictures of Gerald and of their football squads from over the years, he said.

"He was so happy that I made the page, but I could tell he really missed football so much. It was heartbreaking for myself and so many others when his plans to play college football and basketball never worked out — but there are too many similar stories to his all around our country," Matthew said.

Matthew added that his mother also loved Gerald. "She enjoyed being his teacher in elementary school. They even shared the same birthday. He used to make me laugh all the time, especially when he would imitate Jim Carrey from the movie 'Ace Ventura Pet Detective.' I could go on all day about this man, but it’s been hard to wrap my mind around this tragic news."

Looking back over his record-making high school career, the articles reflect a young star on the rise.

Marienfeld spoke to Newsday in 2001: "He is so dangerous. I saw him as a little seventh-grader and I knew he was something special. He passed all the tests to play varsity football in the eighth grade and he's been running over and around people ever since. Teams will not kick in his direction," Marienfeld said. "The playoffs are very possible," Marienfeld said. "Anything is possible with a player like Gerald."

Gerald's quote, in his senior yearbook, read: "If you're trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I've had the; everybody has had them. But obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it or work around it." — anonymous.

His "secret ambition," the yearbook said, was to "go to college and play football."

His legacy, all agree, will live forever — but the pain of losing him is unspeakably hard to bear.

"Gerald put us on the map. A stellar athlete," Sara Raynor wrote on the GoFundMe. "No mother should have to bury her son."

To donate to the GoFundMe, click here.