HILLSBORO, Ore. — Family and friends celebrated the life of Barrett Bevacqua Sunday, after the 20-year-old died in a plane crash Tuesday.
Family members said Bevacqua was a renaissance man, who loved to sing, cook and hunt. He also pitched in the Little League World Series and played high school football. Colleges offered him academic and athletic scholarships.
"He always, always had to excel," Matt Bevacqua, Barrett’s dad said.
His biggest dream was to fly. Barrett’s father said that dream started when Barrett was just two years old. Recently, he enrolled at Horizon Air’s Ascend Pilot Academy, training to become a commercial pilot.
On Tuesday, that dream turned to tragedy when Barrett and two others boarded a plane.
Around 6:45 p.m., the Piper Seminole he was in spiraled out of control and crashed into the roof of a home in Newberg. No one inside the house was injured.
"I never would've thought I'd have to live a day without my brother,” Brooklyn Bevacqua, Barrett’s sister, said. “And a lifetime without him doesn't seem fair."
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Barrett and his flight instructor, 22-year-old Michele Cavalloti were killed. Federal transportation officials are investigating the cause of the crash.
"I'm struggling to understand how this is part of a bigger plan," Barrett’s friend Kendall Baldwin said.
Hundreds gathered at the Hillsboro airport to honor Barrett’s life, and remember the 20-year-old, who loved long drives, good food and practical jokes.
“I love you Bear, and I’ll be back up in the clouds with you before you know it,” Baldwin said.