MENTOR, Ohio — The Mentor community is mourning the death of a 14-year-old high school student.
According to the school district, Mentor High School student Lucas McGee died at the hospital surrounded by loved ones.
"Lucas will be remembered for his warm personality, kind spirit, quiet strength, and unwavering sense of humor that made him a wonderful friend and classmate. He was always smiling and happy, yet determined, hardworking, and willing to put in the extra effort to achieve his goals — both in the classroom and in athletics. His teachers describe him as driven, smart, kind, respectful, and full of life — someone who led by example and faced every challenge with a positive attitude. He displayed grace and good sportsmanship, treated people well, and will always be known for lifting up everyone around him. Lucas will be greatly missed, and our deepest sympathy is with his family and friends," the school district said in a letter that went out to parents, guardians and staff on Friday morning.
According to those close to the McGee family, he suffered a cardiac arrest during a routine wrestling conditioning exercise on Sept. 29.
"We're still learning at this point and obviously we had people responding right away. We've reached out to them and talked to them and kind of worked through the process with them as well but still learning what exactly happened and why," Mentor Public Schools Superintendent Craig Heath said.
McGee's dad posted to social media that an MRI showed severe and extensive brain damage.
"Due to the amount of time Lucas was not breathing and had no heartbeat, he suffered a massive amount of hypoxic brain damage," his dad, Dave, said.
McGee's ventilator was removed this week, according to Dave's social media post.
McGee was also a part of the high school wrestling team.
Shore Middle School head wrestling coach, Aaron Humphries, told News 5's Kaylee Olivas that McGee was part of the team for two years.
"He was a 7th grader with little to no experience, and he came out and he said, 'I think I want to wrestle.' I said, 'Good, it's a good sport to do.' He had to work hard. He worked his way into the starting lineup," Humphries said. "We watched him persevere, push forward, and he really learned the sport. It was awesome just watching him. He's a kid with such drive that when you think he's lost the match, he'll show you, not quite yet, it's not over yet."
Humphries reflected on McGee's middle school wrestling days, where he would use his height to his advantage.
"He was very flexible. He used it to his ability. A lot of times kids would think they had him turned on his back and he would stretch and move beyond what they thought was possible, and you look up and the kid who had him on his back, he'd have that kid on their back, and we'd be like, 'Whoa,'" said Humphries.
Humphries said McGee would also use his flexibility to light up a room with laughter.
"It would be one of those hard days where the wrestlers felt like the coaches pushed them a little bit and everybody would be dead tired stretching at the end of practice. Lucas would be sitting there with a straight face, and then he'd just take his leg and put it behind his neck. Everybody looked over and would just bust out laughing. He just changed the atmosphere, lightened the whole atmosphere," Humphries said.
McGee was awarded the sportsmanship award in 2024.
Humphries described McGee as a kid who was always positive and aimed to uplift those around him.
When Humphries learned of McGee's passing, he said it hit him and his team hard.
"All of our wrestlers, we take them on and we develop a rapport with them and we want to, you know, help them get to the next level and just realize, you know, the possibilities of what they can actually achieve in life. When you hear news of this, it hurts," Humphries said. "We have to understand these things happen, and then do our best to push forward and know that, you know, with that, he's still here. We all know that."
For those who may not have had the privilege of knowing McGee, Humphries said he wants everyone to carry McGee's legacy of being a fighter with them.
"He definitely fought a good fight and pushed forward. He was positive at the same time. He believed in himself and also he was a listener, and we can learn a lot from him in that. Some days were good, some days weren't the best, but he would focus on his process and keep pushing forward. We can learn that from Lucas. We can learn a lot from him in that manner and we can honor him by doing that," Humphries said.
Not only was he a fighter, but Heath described him as "full of life."
"Lucas was a great kid, freshman student at Mentor High School, been in our school system all the way through, went to Orchard Hollow Elementary School, went to Shore Middle School, was involved in clubs and activities, sports, gifted student," Heath said.
McGee has two older siblings, a sister who is a Mentor High School junior and a brother who has since graduated.
Heath said the school district's main focus is on making sure McGee's family is supported during this time.
But the district said it plans to make a school-wide announcement on Monday, with support available to students.
"To assist students and staff in coping with the loss of Lucas, our school counselors and our school psychologist will be available to meet with students," the district stated. "Mental health professionals from the Lake County Trauma Response Team will also be at school on Monday to work with us to ensure any student who may be grieving receives proper attention. We will continue to provide these services as long as they’re needed."
Mentor High School's football team will play Shaker Heights at the Jerome T. Osborne Stadium Friday at 7 p.m.
Prior to the game, there will be a moment of silence for McGee.
Students are also planning to wear green to the game, as Heath said that was McGee's favorite color.
If you'd like to donate to McGee's family, a GoFundMe has been created. Proceeds will go towards funeral/memorial expenses, unanticipated medical bills, and other immediate and unexpected needs, according to the donation page.
As of 5:30 p.m., it has raised more than $27,000.
