{"id":418,"date":"2026-07-20T21:14:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T21:14:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businessmovingservicess.com\/?p=418"},"modified":"2026-07-20T21:14:01","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T21:14:01","slug":"never-stop-saying-his-name-nolan-wells-grieving-parents-speak-at-his-funeral","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businessmovingservicess.com\/?p=418","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Never Stop Saying His Name\u2019: Nolan Wells\u2019 Grieving Parents Speak At His Funeral"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<!-- do not apply CSS styles to this element! --><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>\n\tOCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. \u2013 On Monday, the family and friends of Mississippi teen Nolan Xavier Wells said their goodbyes and paid their respects at his funeral, held at Center Pointe Church in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/businessmovingservicess.com\/?p=416\">Lindsay Clancy Murder Trial: Everything We Know About the Mom Accused of Killing Her 3 Children<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n\tHundreds gathered at the church Monday morning, many wearing sky blue at the request of Wells\u2019 mother. Wells played for his high school football team, which wore the color blue.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\u201cNolan had such a gentle, calming spirit about him. He had a way of making people feel seen, welcome, and valued. He could lift your confidence with just a few words and make you feel like you belonged,\u201d said Well\u2019s mother, Christine Wonsley, who wore a pin with her son\u2019s picture on it. \u201cI ask that each of you keep Nolan\u2019s memory alive. Hold him close in your hearts, share his stories, and never stop saying his name. As long as we continue to remember him, his light will continue to shine through us all. Nolan, we love you. We\u2019ll continue to fight for you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\u201cNolan meant a lot to a lot of people,\u201d said Wells\u2019 father, Elmore Wonsley. \u201cToday shows us how much he meant to the community, to the country, and to the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n\tThe service took place two weeks after 18-year-old Wells was found dead on the shore of Horn Island, a barrier island off the Mississippi coastline, on July 6. Wells had gone missing following a July 4 boat trip with friends, and his disappearance and death have drawn national attention. The Jackson County Sheriff\u2019s department, along with the FBI, is conducting an investigation into Wells\u2019 death. The autopsy reports from both the state and the family\u2019s investigations have not been released.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\tFrom 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. CT,\u00a0 a visitation was held, followed by a funeral in which Rev. Al Sharpton officiated, and the family\u2019s civil rights attorney Ben Crump gave a speech calling for justice. During the visitation, a slideshow of childhood photos of Wells with his friends and family played on the screen. His sports jerseys were framed and lined up next to the casket, which was adorned with blue and white flowers.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n\t\u201cWe want to celebrate Nolan and at the same time say we want a full and thorough investigation,\u201d Sharpton said. \u201cFor an 18-year-old young man to no longer be with us, we want answers. For the family, the closure will come when there is justice.\u201d He added, \u201cLong after the cameras are gone, they will bear the burden of an empty chair in the house.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tSharpton spoke about the attention the case has brought to Wells\u2019 family, including hate mail Wells\u2019 mother received last week. Sharpton also thanked filmmaker Spike Lee and former NFL player Terrell Owens for attending the service. Owens posted about Wells\u2019 death last week, tagging President Donald Trump and writing, \u201cIf you can make a call to overturn a call for a soccer match then you can make a call for the JUSTICE of Nolan Wells.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tDuring his eulogy, Sharpton offered a $50,000 reward for anyone who brings a tip leading to an arrest or conviction in the case of Wells\u2019 death. Actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry texted Sharpton during the funeral to announce he\u2019d match the reward, bringing it to $100,000. \u201cHe was not on that island by himself,\u201d Sharpton said. \u201cSomebody saw something or knows something.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/businessmovingservicess.com\/?p=414\">A Brief History of Trump Being Booed<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n\tWhen Attorney Crump took the stage, he led the mourners in the audience in a chant of, \u201cJustice for Nolan Wells.\u201d\u00a0 Crump said, \u201cWe are on a ferocious search for the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.\u201d Someone in the audience shouted back, \u201cSo help me God!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\tAt the service, the song \u201cTrust in God\u201d was performed by Elevation Worship, \u201cSung\u201d was performed by Thaddeus Fairley, Sr., and \u201cYou Know My Name\u201d was sung by gospel singer Tasha Cobbs Leonard. Pallbearers were Carlisha Briscoe, Jaden Briscoe, Jaylen Williams, Jayvon Williams, O\u2019Nicholas Wonsley, and Xavier Bryant. The funeral was available to be live-streamed.<\/p>\n<p>\n\tAfter the funeral, an invite-only celebration of life was held at Jackson County Fairgrounds in Pascagoula. Wells\u2019 mother said she wanted to give family and friends a time to \u201cgrieve together and fellowship.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\tMovie producer Perry helped pay for the funeral expenses for the family, and former football player and activist Colin Kaepernick helped fund the private autopsy. Wells\u2019 family has also been collecting donations for their independent investigation via GoFundMe.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n\tAfter the funeral, Crump and Shapton put on a press conference where Crump was asked when he would have the independent autopsy results back, and he replied, \u201cSoon.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\tThe Wonsleys briefly addressed the media at the press conference, as well.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\u201cWe have not fully processed or grieved Nolan,\u201d Christine said, her voice breaking when she was asked how she plans to honor her son\u2019s legacy. She and her husband Elmore said they were heartened to see all of the support for their son, and that it was a testament to who he was as a person.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\tIn the days leading up to the funeral, Wonsley posted on social media, asking the public for more details surrounding the events that took place on Horn Island the day her son went missing. \u201cNono just know your father and I will not stop advocating for you son,\u201d Wonsley wrote. \u201cWe are so proud of you and we love you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/businessmovingservicess.com\/?p=412\">America Got the World Cup It Deserves \u2014 Good and Bad<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Christine and Elmore Wonsley honor their son at a funeral officiated by Rev. Al Sharpton in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, as investigations into his death continue<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":417,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-rs-reports"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>\u2018Never Stop Saying His Name\u2019: Nolan Wells\u2019 Grieving Parents Speak At His Funeral - Business Moving Services<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/businessmovingservicess.com\/?p=418\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Never Stop Saying His Name\u2019: Nolan Wells\u2019 Grieving Parents Speak At His Funeral - Business Moving Services\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Christine and Elmore Wonsley honor their son at a funeral officiated by Rev. 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