CLEVELAND — A Strongsville teen is helping others realize a dream he never could. Two years after Davion Flanagan lost his life, an inaugural scholarship is helping its first recipient.
“Davion always called us his second chance. And I think others deserve a second chance, or help, as well,” said Davion’s mother Jaime Flanagan.
The Flanagans fostered and adopted Davion and his two younger sisters when he was 8. It was a similar childhood to what Melissa Aviles experienced. In her scholarship application essay, she described overcoming the challenges of foster care and dreams of opening her own barbershop.
“I felt like we had a bond, just there alone. And the fact that they did what they did for him and continued his happiness, his dreams. And now I can get that too. I know I can get that,” she said.
Thursday afternoon, the Flanagan family surprised Aviles at Allstate Hairstyling and Barber College with the first scholarship in their son’s name. It will cover her remaining tuition at the school and allow her to take the state exam to receive her license.
“I’m thankful. God works in mysterious ways, I’ll tell you that for sure. And I know Davion had a part in it too. So I’m excited,” Aviles said.
Davion shared a similar dream of eventually owning his own barber shop. His family laughed as they recalled him cutting hair for his football teammates and coaches.
“They’d walk in with crazy hair, walk out with a whole new haircut. It was great memories. The bathroom was always covered in hair,” said his sister Davyne Flanagan.
Davion’s father, Scott Flanagan, added, “He got his application and he was in the process of filling it out when unfortunately his life was taken from him.”
19-year-old Davion and his friend, 20-year-old Dominic Russo, died in a car crash in July 2022.
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The driver, Russo’s 17-year-old girlfriend, was convicted of murder for crashing the car purposely.
She was given two concurrent life sentences, with the possibility of parole after 15 years.
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Through the pain of losing their son, the Flanagans wanted to create a positive legacy.
“The idea of creating this community of barbers, like my daughter said, just really helps on the hard days,” said Jaime Flanagan.
The family believes the scholarship is a fitting way to honor the young man they remember for his generosity and kindness.
“We’ve had trauma, we’ve had pain. But even through all that, he’s always shown a kind heart to others. So I truly believe that’s what he would want us to do with this,” said Davyne Flanagan.
The Davion Flanagan Memorial Fund has been established as a 501c3. You can donate through the nonprofit’s PayPal link by CLICKING HERE..
You can also support the scholarship and message the family about tax-deductible donations through this GoFundMe link HERE.
