MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – The families and friends of two Florida students are devastated after learning the young men were killed while on a graduation trip.
For those who knew Albert Ales and Zachary Morris, they were the whole package. Having just graduated from southeast high school — the two 18-year-olds were known to crack up their friends.
John Ferguson said, “They lit up any room that they were in. I mean, come on, the charisma that they came in, the confidence that they had was incredible.”
“Albert was the guy that if you had a problem he was going to fix it,” Anthony Sevarino said. “Zach is just the smartest guy you would ever see. He was so confident in his speaking.”
They impressed not only their teachers, but they got the attention of UCF, Yale and Navy recruits.
Engineering teacher Richard Platt said, “Not only is it a great loss for us, it’s a great loss to our country. These young men they exemplified the best in what our school can produce and what our state can produce. They were the best.”
Their plans for a future were cut short though. On a graduation trip to Cusco, Peru, a bus slammed into the two friends, killing them as they rode on a scooter. They had been in the country no more than three hours.
“When you find out about it you’re just numb by it,” Platt explained. “You know, Zach’s mom and I were texting back and forth, and that was tough. It was tough. I had to go outside and take a walk.”
Albert and Zack always looked to give back to their community, helping their teacher build machines that mass produce toys for poor kids around the world. “They picked up the phone one day and called Google and got one of the top vice presidents at Google and they wrote us a check for $16,000 dollars,” Platt said.
Now, facing a future without their best friends, those who knew them best say Albert and Zach influenced them forever.
“They wanted to live life to the fullest,” Ferguson said. “So I’ve figured that’s how I’m going to live the rest of my life too.”
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