‘Their hearts showed through their smiles.’ Funeral set for Lexington brothers killed in crash.
Funeral arrangements have been released for two teenage brothers who died after a crash on Harrodsburg Road early Sunday.
Robert Andrew “Roan” Sanders, 17, and Neo Sanders, 15, were both students at Sayre High School.
They were passengers in a Toyota Prius that crashed into a tree in front of Southside Technical Center at about 3:40 a.m., Lexington police said.
A pedestrian saw the car several hours later and reported the wreck. The 18-year-old driver was freed by the fire department and taken to a hospital with serious leg injuries.
Roan and Neo died at the scene.
“These two remarkable young men brought joy, laughter, and kindness to our community,” Sayre said Tuesday in a statement on its Facebook page. “The most important thing that we can do during this difficult time is to support one another. Our sincerest condolences to the Sanders family.”
Roan played soccer and basketball; Neo played football and lacrosse, according to an obituary.
The obituary said the brothers “had very different personalities, but in both boys’ faces, their hearts showed through their smiles.”
They appreciated each other’s differences, and “they may not always have understood each other’s actions or motives, but they loved each other unquestioningly and their mother unconditionally,” the obituary stated.
Roan was described as “an energetic fireplug” who enjoyed acting in school plays and traveling with the Lexington Football Club.
Neo had “a compassionate smile ... and a firm guiding moral compass” and loved video games and Legos.
Both had traveled to the Dominican Republic through the Wine to Water project, which helps provide clean water to communities around the world.
The boys are survived by their mother, Heather Sanders; maternal grandmother, Suzanne Prichard; and maternal grandfather, Ron Sanders and his wife, Dr. Ardis Hoven. Hoven is the former chairwoman of the World Medical Association and past president of the American Medical Association.
Roan is also survived by his father, Chris Smith, of Louisville, and Neo is survived by his father, Mark Williams, of Lexington.
Funeral services for Roan and Neo will begin at 4 p.m. Friday at Central Christian Church, 205 East Short Street. A celebration of life will follow from 5 to 7 p.m. in the church fellowship hall.
Milward Funeral Directors is in charge of arrangements.
This story was originally published February 19, 2019 at 5:50 PM.
