In an obituary in The Star-Ledger, Lennon Baldwin’s parents, Sharon Varnelis and John Baldwin, wrote:
“What Lennon really wanted was to be loved, respected, and accepted by his peers. Now Lennon is finally at peace.”
Classmates and friends paid their respects to Lennon, a Morristown High School freshman who died Wednesday at his Morris Township home, with a candlelight vigil on Friday night. They walked from the school to the Morristown Green and stood in a circle, gazing silently at the flickering flames. It ended an emotional day that included a prayer service attended by 700 people at Assumption Church.
The Morris County Prosecutor’s office is investigating whether bullying may have pushed Lennon to take his own life.
Lennon’s obituary remembered him as an avid bowler who once rolled a 258 game; a guitarist and drummer who was learning to mix his own songs; an accomplished skier and Xbox player who excelled at Call of Duty; a longboarder; and a fan of The Simpsons, South Park and The Office.
After Friday’s prayer service, friends recalled a smiling, joking Lennon from summers spent together at the Diamond Gymnastics camp in East Hanover, where Lennon was a counselor-in-training.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Lennon Baldwin Memorial Fund, c/o Johnson & Johnson Esq., 30 Columbia Turnpike, Suite 200, Florham Park, N.J. 07930.