COLUMBUS (WCMH) — A memorial brick will be placed at the Ohio State Fairground in honor the 18-year-old who was killed on the Fire Ball ride.
Almost two years ago, the Fire Ball ride malfunctioned, killing the young Marine recruit and injuring six others at the Ohio State Fair.
There will be 25 memorial bricks placed here on the Ohio State Fairgrounds this year.
Tyler’s mom, Amber Duffield, said she thought it was important to have her son remembered here in a positive way.
“Well, anytime that I see Tyler’s name in print on anything like this, it is very emotional, but in this situation, I’d like to hope that it is going to be a beacon of hope to those who continue to come to our state fair,” Duffield said.
She added it will be a lasting tribute to Tyler Jarrell at a place she said always meant so much to her son and her family.
“That’s been a family tradition forever and then it obviously was the last destination that Tyler was at that was dear to him and so it seemed like a no brainer to get on there and try to figure that out,” Duffield said.
While figuring out how to buy a brick, she noticed a potential issue: Tyler didn’t fit the requirements for the memorial brick.
It states on the Ohio State Fair website:
“The Ohio Expo Center and State Fair is a public space and it is generally not appropriate for memorializing individuals who did not have a significant relationship to the Fair.”
That did not stop Duffield from going a step further for the child she called “Slim.”
“I did what I do. I found a phone number and I called,” she said.
It was the first time Amber has ever talked to someone from the fair directly since the night Tyler was killed on the Fire Ball Ride.
After a few days, she heard back with the news that there will be a brick placed on the fairgrounds in honor of her son and it will read, “In Loving Memory of Tyler Jerrell.”
“I was speechless actually on the phone and then I actually cried while still on the phone,” she said.
Duffield said what made the news better is that the general manager of the fair paid for the brick out of his own pocket, which is a gesture she said she will always remember.
“It’s not a business,” she said. “It’s not about money. It’s just the recognition that something very awful happened.”
The brick is expected to be place near the Cardinal Gate entrance July 15.