Colonial Heights teen: a life cut short

Roughly 700 people gathered at a church in Colonial Heights to remember a teen who disappeared a week ago in the Appomattox River.

Friends gathered at Mount Pleasant Baptist Church to remember 16-year-old William Shields. He was described as a talented soccer player with a dry and witty sense of humor who went out of his way to make people feel welcome.

Police believe it was Shields' body that was found by a boater Saturday in the Appomattox, but the identity had not been confirmed by a medical examiner as of yesterday.

Shields was swimming with friends Sept. 8 when he went underwater and didn't come back up.

The junior at Colonial Heights High School was praised for working tirelessly on the field -- as a creative and unselfish player who excelled at taking penalty kicks -- and in the classroom, where he challenged himself with difficult classes.

In his short life, Shields touched many, said John Keeler, principal of Colonial Heights High School.

"Sometimes you'd catch a witty comment or a quick smile," Keeler recalled.

"I wish I knew just what to say to make this all better," the principal added. "But I don't."

Shields' friends jokingly remembered how he had gone to England to play soccer and that when he came back, he was constantly imitating a British accent. One friend said Shields had appreciated his close relationship with his father.

His friend Brandon Conklin said Shields was good at every position on the soccer field and that he was captain of their junior varsity team their freshman year.

Coaches described him as a quiet leader. One former coach, J.P. McNulty, said Shields made his teammates better players and better people.

Conklin's father, Robert M. Conklin, urged the mourners to help take care of Shields' family.

"This is the beginning of a very long road," Conklin said.

Shields' survivors include his parents, John and Virginia Maceluch Shields, and his brother, Nicholas.
Contact Reed Williams at (804) 649-6332 or .