Caring. Brother to all. More than a friend. Those who knew Cameron Maynard knew him as these things, and much more. Maynard epitomized brotherly love and seemed to personify what it means to be a good friend. 

“He was always there for me, checked up on me. He was bold,” senior Grey Johnson said. “He was a really goofy guy. For Feast and Follies, he just looked like a goofball, he had a Nerf sword, he had a Nerf shield, and a Burger King hat and a cape. He was goofy, but he really cared.” 

Maynard, 18, died early Friday morning. He was a 2019 Texas High graduate who was enrolled at Southern Arkansas University to major in business marketing. While at Texas High, he impacted people through his leadership in band, where he served as the trumpet section leader. He also co-founded the philosophy club, was a member of SOUL and was active in his church, Hampton Church of Christ. 

“Our church would do a thing where they would get the young men of the congregation to lead songs on certain Sunday nights, and there was this one song we would always try to pressure each other into singing: ‘Kumbaya.’ To us it was just the most random [song], like who would actually lead that?” Johnson said. “Cameron was the first guy to actually lead it. Cameron was bold enough to actually lead it.” 

His religion played a massive role in his life and connected him to most of his closest friends. He had plans to pursue a career and degree in ministry after college, and those around him knew how large of a role his church played in his life. 

“I want everyone to remember Cameron as someone who would do anything for the people he loved. He was a man of God who always tried to do the right thing,” 2019 graduate Anna Loanzon said. “He was involved at Hampton Church of Christ his whole life. He preached fairly often on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights, and he’d lead singing sometimes too. Most of his summer he spent at church functions, including a preaching camp at Harding University. He loved God, and he loved going to church. From my understanding, Hampton was his safe haven, and he made lifelong friends there. That’s how he and I met.”

Cameron will be remembered as someone who cared for those around him and strived to make their lives more enjoyable, not only through his sense of humor, but through walking alongside his friends through their struggles. 

“Every second of the day, he would try to make your day better. He carried your problems along with his, you know, anytime you had a problem, you could talk to him,” senior Andrew Reed said. “And he would make you talk to him. He’d come up to you, ask you what’s going on, and then help you through it. He was truly a friend to everyone who knew him.”