| Location | Adairsville |
| Age | 13 years |
| Cause of Death | Shot |
| Date of Birth | 11/02/1987 |
| Date of Death | 21/05/2000 |
| Visitors | 504 since 13/09/2009 |
| Creator |
Michael S. Wilbanks,there is not a day that goes by that we do not miss you.We still wish you were walking, talking, and joking with us.On may 21st 2000 you were taken from us so fast we didn't get to say good bye.It broke all of our hearts seeing you laying in that casket knowing you were taken too soon.You were murdered, shot in the back by a guy you thought was your friend.Everyone found out about what happened and there was anger and sadness.I admit I broke down and cried from the time I found out to the time I set your casket down.Your loss is still felt in the hearts of your friends and family.We will never forget you or anything you taught us about life.Its hard to wake up everyday knowing that you will not be around to make jokes or do something to make all of us laugh.You will always be in our hearts And we promise never to forget you.We will keep your memory alive.
WITH LOVE
DAVID, MALINDA, RACHEL, AND DARRYL.WE LOVE YOU MAN.
love you
hi brother i know your well...and i am letting you know our sister is doing well. i am taking care of her and making sure she is ok... and we miss you everyday and we are trying to bring back them old days lol but so much has change but we are still here and some of us dont talk any more but you keep us all near no matter our differences we will always love them no matter what and we want to say we love all of you David ,Rachel Michael, jasper , and robin no matter what and Michael my brother we all love you and want to thank you for the years we had with you it was a blessing and we all will hold it near gone but never forgotten we love you
your sisters,
Marie and Malinda .....
The tiny rosebud God picked to bloom in Heaven.
The master gardener from heaven above
Planted a seed in the garden of Love,
And from it there grew a rosebud small
That never had time to open at all.
For God in his perfect and all-wise way
Chose this rose for his heavenly bouquet,
And great was the joy of this tiny rose
To be the one our Father chose
To leave earth’s garden
For one on high
where roses bloom always and never die.
So, while you can’t see your precious rose bloom,
You know the great gardener from the upper room
Is watching and tending this wee rose with care,
Tenderly touching each petal so fair.
So think of your darling with the angels above,
Secure and contented and surrounded with love,
And remember God blessed and enriched your lives too,
For in dying your darling brought heaven closer to you.
Helen Steiner Rice
the news article
If Teavious Whatley's rules had been followed, his stepson Michael would be alive today. But teenage boys don't always follow the rules, even when the rules involve lethal weapons. Whatley, a 58-year-old carpet mill worker, knows that. It's why he has trouble being alone during the long summer days at his Adairsville, Ga., home, which is a little too quiet without 13-year-old Michael.
"When I'm by myself is when it's bad," said Whatley. "All I can think about is how I failed him.... I was just so sure that everything was OK. But as I see it now, nothing was OK, really. I just felt I could have done more, that's all."
On the night of Saturday, May 20, Michael Wilbanks and his older brother were at their home, along with three friends, drinking and joking--and eventually playing with a gun kept in the household--while their stepfather was in the hospital for hip surgery. The coroner's report says that Michael died from a gunshot in the back from a modified .410-gauge shotgun at 3:30 a.m. on May 21.
Police have charged 14-year-old Thomas Riddle as an adult in Michael's homicide, although they have left open the possibility that the charges could be reduced or that he could be tried as a juvenile. Adairsville Police Chief Charles Stafford said that "the boys had been playing with the gun" and that Riddle "didn't realize it was loaded ... that's going to be determined in court." According to his lawyer, Thomas has maintained from the beginning that the shooting was an accident.
Michael Wilbanks' death prompted no appearances on the Today show, no telephone calls from the White House, and no legislation. But it stands as a stark reminder of the dangers of keeping firearms at home, even when they are purchased by law-abiding, churchgoing adults like Teavious Whatley, and with the best of intentions.
Whatley says his kids liked to shoot at targets and hunt in the woods. He bought the gun from a supervisor on the job. "He was a member of the National Rifle Association," said Whatley, "and he believed in teaching kids gun safety. I thought about it and I said, `Yeah, well, I'd rather them learn from me than be in a stranger's house--be around guns and not know anything about them.' But I did it for safety reasons only."
Plus, as a black man raising five white stepchildren, Whatley thought it would not be a bad idea to have a gun in the house. "I'm the only black person that lives in the neighborhood. I thought about that, too, when I purchased it. I need to protect the kids," he said. Whatley has raised his five stepchildren since Michael was a toddler, along with Michael's brother, Steven, 16, and three girls, Lawanda, 14, Sherrie, 23, and Sheila, 25. Their mother abandoned the family several years ago.
RIP Michael Wilbanks......love you
hey lil bro its been a while since you left us.we still miss you.I really miss you, there is nothing I wouldn't give to see you again.
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There have been 29 candles lit for Michael.
