NATHANIEL LEE HUGHES

12/19/1989 – 08/21/2008

No man knows when his hour will come:

As fish are caught in a cruel net,

or birds are taken in a snare,

so men are trapped by evil times

that fall unexpectedly upon them.

Ecclesiastes 9:12

I miss you and I love you BubbaI miss you and I love you Bubba

I miss you and I love you Bubba

Nathaniel, “Gift from God”. He truly was a gift, a gift that we were so blessed to have enjoyed for a short eighteen years. Nathaniel was his given name but we called him Nathan. As a little boy we tagged him with the nickname Punkin’ Head. In his early teen years I started calling him Neify after  Neifi Perez, shortstop for the Colorado Rockies. As a young adult he preferred to be called Nate.

Nathan was smart and quick witted. He had an infectious laugh and there was always a smile on his face. He loved animals and was so good with children. He loved to draw, play guitar, skateboard and listen to music. Above all he loved his family. He gave the best hugs and would always say “I love you” when we parted. Nathan’s best friend was his younger brother Nicholas. They were inseparable and had the deepest of bonds. Nicholas was fifteen when Nathan was murdered and arrived at his apartment minutes after he was stabbed.

He liked Fargo’s pizza, fettuccini Alfredo, homemade pumpkin pie and almond chicken. We played AC DC, Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones on the guitar together. He liked to listen to Bob Marley and Tool. There was always a scooter being fixed in my driveway, an electronic device being dismantled in my garage just to see what made it work, or a grape in the microwave just to watch it spark. I knew he was going to be an engineer late on in life.

I can still hear his laugh, feel his tight hug, see his bright smile and hear him say, “I love you dad”.

Wherever this road takes me and whatever I do…. I do for you Neif!

I miss you and I love you BubbaI miss you and I love you Bubba

Would you know my name

If I saw you in heaven

Will it be the same

If I saw you in heaven

I must be strong, and carry on

Cause I know I don't belong

Here in heaven

Would you hold my hand

If I saw you in heaven

Would you help me stand

If I saw you in heaven

I'll find my way, through night and day

Cause I know I just can't stay

Here in heaven

Time can bring you down

Time can bend your knee

Time can break your heart

Have you begging please

Begging please

Beyond the door

There's peace I'm sure.

 
And I know there'll be no more...

Tears in heaven

Would you know my name

If I saw you in heaven

Will it be the same

If I saw you in heaven

I must be strong, and carry on

Cause I know I don't belong

Here in heaven

Cause I know I don't belong

Here in heaven

Eric Clapton

I miss you and I love you BubbaI miss you and I love you Bubba

Take me away

A secret place

A sweet escape

Take me away.

Take me away

To better days

Take me away

A hiding place.

There's this place that I go

Where nobody knows,

Where the rivers flow,

And I call it home.

And there's no more lies

And the darkness is light

And nobody cries,

There's only butterflies.

NATASHA BEDINGFIELD

I miss you and I love you BubbaI miss you and I love you Bubba

Three people are currently incarcerated for Nathan’s murder.

Kyle Atkinson received 0-2 years in juvenile detention and will be released at any time. His mother Karin Atkinson is currently serving an eight year sentence at the Denver Women’s Correctional Facility.

The person who stabbed Nathan, Mr. Logsdon, is serving a thirty-four year sentence at the Sterling Correctional Facility here in Colorado. All three told the Judge how sorry they were that Nathan was murdered, but to this day, none have told this to our family.

I miss you and I love you BubbaI miss you and I love you Bubba