Boy's love of bugs will memorialize him
In the heart-wrenching days after Mark Fike, 11, was killed in January in an accident at his bus stop, his family decided to have donations sent to the Butler-Freeport Community Trail instead of accepting flowers at the funeral home.
On June 29, an event will be held at the trail in Mark's honor to celebrate his love for insects, and area children are encouraged to attend.
Meet Mark's Friends will be from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Bonniebrook Trailhead. Parking is next door at the Summit Township Municipal Building.
Chris Ziegler, president of the trail council, said 120 children will enjoy three bug exploration hikes, where “bugsperts” from the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania will help children find and identify bugs along the trail and share facts about them.
Ziegler said children who participate in the free event will receive a drawstring backpack with a bug identification book, a bug log book, a bug box with magnifying glass and other bug-related items.
They also will view the new insect identification kiosk donated by TrueCommerce of Cranberry Township in Mark's memory as well as a bench donated by the family that reads “In memory of Mark Fike, the future biologist the world will never know.”
This is an excerpt from a story that will appear in the Butler Eagle.
