Slain teen’s former Scout leader leaves a special gift

The gift that Kirt Ryberg left for Sam Poss’ family said everything about what he thought of the young man police say was murdered.

Ryberg was Poss’ Boy Scout leader years ago. Ryberg was among more than 200 people who attended a prayer vigil for Poss on Thursday night. Guests were asked to sign a book for the family, and Ryberg left a small item after signing his name.

It was the Eagle Scout medal that Ryberg earned in 1969. Poss never got one, and Ryberg wanted the family to have it.

“I just remember he was a lot of fun,” Ryberg said. “He was rambunctious. He was polite. He was just a pleasure to be around. He turned out to be a fine young man.”

The vigil, held at Ochlahatchee Ball Park, was supposed to have started at 6:30 p.m. But it actually didn’t start until about 7:30 p.m. because the Perry High School Band practice didn’t end until 7 p.m., and organizers wanted the band members to be able to attend.

Poss, who graduated in the spring, was a drummer in the band.

Once the vigil started, friends, band members and others stood up and shared memories of Poss.

Police say he was killed late Friday or early Saturday morning, and his body was dumped in a wooded area near Lake Joy. Two people have been arrested.

Many of the people at the vigil said they didn’t know Poss, but wanted to come out and show support for the family. Perry hadn’t had a homicide since 2008.

Dwight Miller knew Poss well, and choked back tears as he talked about him. Miller said Poss was close friends with his son.

“He was just a sweet kid,” he said. “I can’t even see him getting in a fight with another kid.”

Many in attendance seemed to still be stunned by the news Thursday morning of the arrests and discovery of the body.

Ashley Dawson lives next door to Poss’ father. She said one of the suspects, Dakota White, was close friends with Poss and was at his house a lot. She had never noticed any trouble between them.

“They were good friends,” she said. “That’s what’s so crazy.”

The initial story when Poss disappeared was that he left White’s house at 1:30 a.m. Saturday to head home, and was never seen again. Dawson said it never occurred to her that White could have been involved.

“I just have a heavy heart,” she said. “Why? There’s no reason at all ever to do something like that, but I don’t see him giving anyone a reason to do something like that. He’s not an aggressive person.”

Ryberg said he has two boys who were in the Scout troop with Poss, and one of them broke down in tears after hearing the news about Poss on Thursday.

“It’s hit us all,” he said. “Our children are so precious. We take it for granted, but they are not guaranteed to be here tomorrow. It makes you just want to call all of your kids and tell them that you love them.”

This story was originally published October 20, 2016 at 9:02 PM with the headline "Slain teen’s former Scout leader leaves a special gift."