Echo community holds vigil after Arizona helicopter crash kills four

A community vigil and school tribute brought Echo residents together this week after four people from the area died in an Arizona helicopter crash. The family of the victims asked Echo School District to invite friends to a vigil held Friday at 5 p.m. in the Echo School Commons, followed by attendees entering the Echo girls’ basketball game to honor the victims.

The four killed were identified by family as pilot David McCarty and his nieces Rachel and Faith McCarty and Katelyn Heideman. The crash occurred Jan. 2 while McCarty was piloting a private tour. Federal investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have said their investigations are ongoing.

In Echo, the school commons served as a natural gathering place for a town where the high school gym and cafeteria double as civic centers. For a community of this size, losses like these ripple through families, classrooms and teams. The planned entry into the girls’ basketball game signaled a public, collective mourning that also aimed to support students and teammates who knew the victims.

Beyond grief, the event underscores broader public health and equity concerns in rural Union County. Small towns often have fewer mental health providers, longer waits for counseling, and limited specialized bereavement services. When a local tragedy affects multiple generations at once, schools and community organizations can be the only available source of emotional support for weeks and months afterward. That reality puts extra responsibility on school staff, volunteer organizations and county behavioral health partners to identify and reach out to people in need.

Local athletic events and school gatherings can help normalize grieving and create space for shared memory, but they also risk reopening wounds for students who may lack ongoing therapy or trusted adults to process trauma. Families, coaches and teachers should watch for signs of acute distress in young people, including changes in sleep, appetite, behavior or school performance, and connect students to school counselors or county resources when available.

The federal investigations will determine technical causes of the crash; locally, the focus is on mourning and practical support. Echo’s vigil emphasized remembrance and the town’s role as a support network. Neighbors brought what they could offer: presence, a quiet seat in the commons, and the steady routine of a basketball game where the community could grieve together.

Our two cents? Reach out to someone who might be struggling, keep an eye on students and neighbors, and lean on each other—small towns like Echo heal best when everyone does a little of the work together.