Friends Focus on Fundraising While Remembering Vincent Castrillon

The sun streams through the trees casting shadows and shade over the memorial laid for Vincent Castrillon as teens gather quietly, friends and schoolmates of his, talking softly and sweetly about their friend who in the place where they stood.

"We were friends, close friends," said Dean Schineller who graduated with Castrillon.

"There's nothing bad you can say about him. Everything was good, He would give you the shirt off his back," said Schineller, who along with the others had just attended held that morning in Northport.

Castrillon's passions were his cars, his friends and his girlfriend recalled the group gathered there. They smiled and shared stories about how kind he was and how senseless the tragedy seemed to them. He was visiting for the week, in from Louisiana where he had just moved.

"He schooled us on muscle cars," said friend Lance Russell.

"He was so nice," said Crystal Rodrigez. She worked at the same Pep Boys as Castrillon.

"A car drove past during a candlelight ceremony we had here," said Schineller. "It was a 1970 Cutlass. It was the same car, the same color that Vince owned. I felt like it was a sign, like he knew we were there."

Schineller, along with some of Vince's friends,have put together a series of fundraisers to honor Castrillon. The money raised will go to his family. It seemed only fitting that the first will be a car show on Thursday evening at the Kings Park Shopping Center where a table will be set up to take donations.

Others will follow including another car show to be held in Smithotwn at the Stop and Shop on Saturday and two car washes to be held at the Commack Pep Boys. The first car wash will be Sunday at 10:30 a.m.

in Kings Park will also be hosting a fundraiser on Saturday from 10 a.m.- 7 p.m. Baskets and 50/50 raffles will be available.

Anyone wishing to donate a basket to be raffled can contact Dean Schineller at (631) 521- 5009.