Hundreds Mourn the Death of Southold Freshman Ronan Guyer

There are no words.

This was the phrase heard often at DeFriest Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck Monday night, as a long line of mourners waited to greet and comfort the family of Ronan Guyer, a 14-year-old Southold High School freshman who died Nov. 14, five days after suffering cardiac arrest and collapsing this past Friday during a warm-up before the New York State Public High School Athletic Association cross country championships in Elma.

The tragic and shocking death drew family members and friends, parents and young classmates of Ronan, an active student-athlete who played tennis and lacrosse — and absolutely loved sailing. Recent pictures of Ronan — who became quite tall at 14 — with his father and alone on a sailboat were on display, projecting the blossoming enthusiasm he had for the sport.

A video slide show of Ronan and his family showed pictures of a young, smiling boy with shaggy blond hair posing with his family on skiing trips, riding a dirt bike, and with his siblings dressed up as a rock band, complete with inflatable guitars and fake facial hair — with Ronan’s big blue eyes shining no matter what the pose.

Ronan was born in Port Jefferson on April 24, 1998, to Stephen and Lori Guyer. He was a member of the Southold High School cross country team, NJROTC, Southold Boy Scout Troop 6, the Mattituck and Southold sailing teams, and the Southold Yacht Club.

Surviving are his parents, Stephen and Lori Guyer, brother, Colin Guyer, and sister, Shannon Guyer, all of Southold; his paternal grandparents, Florence and Stephen Guyer of Riverhead; maternal grandparents, Barbara and John Schmidt of Wading River; and aunts and uncles, John and Diana Schmidt of Buffalo, Ed and Lisa Plaia of East Moriches, Andy Franz of California and Pamela Guyer and Bonnie Eldon, both of Brooklyn.

His parents request that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Ronald McDonald House or the Peconic Gardiners Junior Sailing Association.

Funeral services continue on Tuesday from 4 to 8 p.m. at DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck.