At funeral, 5-year-old boy killed in Boston school bus crash remembered as ‘definition of life' for family

Boston Globe

17-05-2025

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In an at-times heartrending service, family, loved ones, and friends bid goodbye to Lens inside the church's packed worship space.
His uncle, Ricardo Joseph, speaking in Haitian Creole, called Lens the 'definition of life' for his family. Lens, Ricardo Joseph said, 'was a grown man who lived in the body of a 5-year-old boy.'
'We are thankful to have had the chance to live with Lens for 5 years, which has been more valuable than 50 years,' said Ricardo Joseph, a transcript of whose remarks were also provided in English.
'It always takes a long time for nature to produce a person like Lens.'
The funeral Saturday came as Boston police and the Suffolk District Attorney's office continued investigating the
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Law enforcement authorities have not released any updates from the investigation since the tragedy occurred.
This past week, officials with the city and Boston Public Schools said the driver, Jean Charles, resigned just before a scheduled termination hearing, and said he was driving with an expired credential required to work as a bus driver. The revelations came after the Globe reported Charles was in another accident in Mattapan and Boston police were told he struck two cars just minutes before the deadly crash
City and school officials, who have said Charles struck one car in Mattapan, said Charles didn't report the Mattapan crash as he was supposed to and continued on his bus route.
Charles had been employed for two years by Transdev Transportation, a French company that employs and oversees Boston's school bus drivers. Transdev told Charles to renew his school bus certificate, but he did not.
City and school officials learned that Charles's credential had expired after the Hyde Park crash, they said. Transdev has not commented on the crash or about Charles. Before the city and schools released information about Charles, some community members raised concerns
Inside the church Saturday, speakers during the nearly two-hour service addressed well-wishers in a mix of both Haitian Creole and English, reading passages from the Bible and singing songs.
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Lens was born in 2019 in Arcahaie, Haiti, and moved to the US in 2023 with several family members, including his father, uncle, and grandmother, and settled in Hyde Park, according to his obituary.
Lens, who would have turned 6 on Aug. 8, was his parent's only son and left behind many family members, including his mother and two sisters, aunts and uncles, and cousins.
People wept openly at the funeral. A woman cried out in grief, and was comforted by several people, including a member of the city's community support team. Some people held their heads in their hands as neighbors patted their shoulders or rubbed the backs of their necks.
Among those paying their respects were city leaders, including Mayor Michelle Wu, City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune, and City Councilor Enrique J. Pepén, who represents the district including Hyde Park.
Television screens inside the worship space displayed family photos of Lens as people spoke.
They were of Lens grinning wide for the camera, cheek-to-cheek with loved ones for candid photos; him proudly holding up a drawing of a house done in school; kissing a loved one; holding up a sign that read 'policeman' -- the job he dreamed of doing when he grew into a man.
When his teachers greeted him every morning at school, he'd jokingly reply, 'My name is policeman!'
People were visibly moved when Lens's teachers gave his school certificate to his family. His father stood and gave the educators a hug. His teachers said what made Lens special was his heart -- he made friends easily and 'lifted people up just by being himself.'
Pastor Joel Piton, in remarks that smoothly switched between Haitian Creole and English, spoke in his sermon of the deep grief that arises from a child's death. But it also reflects the fact that people are all mortal, he argued.
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'A life that is brief is a reminder that all of us can be recalled at any time,' Piton said. 'Since we have no guarantee of how long God chooses to give us life, therefore, we must maximize the opportunity God gave us.'
He admonished the crowd: 'We cannot forget him.'
The most common photo of Lens displayed at the funeral was perhaps him at his most dapper: in a grey pinstripe vest, pink tie and handkerchief, and a striped button-down shirt. In the image, Lens is posed, turned to the camera, his hands folded on his leg, his face serious, with one eyebrow raised as if studying someone.
But Lens was still a little boy. Spider-Man's image, in a heroic pose —
arms out, legs bent, as if jumping into action that graced Lens's casket, which was also painted in the hero's signature red and blue colors.
At the end of the service, loved ones dressed in white and black gathered around the casket to escort it from the church. But even in that moment of grief, the superhero's colors could still be seen, glimpsed in bright flashes, through the crowd.
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