Son’s death — ‘You just tolerate it and push on’

Pat O’Bryant catches crabs with his son, Jeff, and grandson, Cael.

“I’m here with my son and grandson. We’re showing him how to catch crabs.”

Do you have other children?
“I have two others. One is deceased. I lost him in 2000 when he was 21. He got in a car with the wrong person. It was a guy showing off in a sports car. He was doing 130 miles an hour on a two-lane blacktop out in the country. He lost control and went into a pine tree. My son was the only person killed. The other passenger was crippled for life. I had the driver prosecuted for manslaughter. He was convicted. He’s out now. But the message is that anybody who breaks the law like that, they should be prosecuted. Anyhow, I did.”

Do you remain bitter about what happened?
“No. You just come to terms with it. It’s just like anything in life. You just tolerate it and push on.”

— Pat O’Bryant