Alexander “Alex” Jarot O’Brien

A celebration of life for Alexander O’Brien, 21, Lawrence will be held at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, March 10, 2018 at Grace Community Church 310 E. 8 ^th Street Overbrook, KS 66524. He ran into the loving, open arms of his sweet Savior on Monday, March 5, 2018 surrounded by his parents, sister, aunt and pastors at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, KS.

Alexander was born June 5, 1996 in Lawrence, KS the son of Patrick Andrew and Crystal Dawn (Bell) O’Brien. The day he entered the world was quite stormy. Over 8 inches of rain fell, and he was born during an active tornado warning.

He was an exemplary student. He attended Broken Arrow Elementary and South Junior High; he graduated from Lawrence High School in 2014 as a class Valedictorian. During high school, he participated in choir, National Honor Society, FYI Club, Aviation Club, and Can We Talk. During his senior year, he was a manager for the Varsity Football and Varsity Softball teams. He chose to manage the softball team so he could be his sister’s number one fan. He received many academic awards and scholarships. At the time of his passing, he was studying Aerospace Engineering and was set to graduate in spring 2019.

Alex attended Grace Community Church in Overbrook his entire life. He was an active member and participated in the Children’s Ministries, VBS, and Youth Group as he was growing up. He volunteered in many ministry projects as a teenager and participated in summer camps.

Alex’s hobbies and interests included planes, trains, John Deere tractors, firetrucks, music, and KU sports. For 12 years he spent one week at MDA summer camp. He went to 3 retreats at the FUSE foundation, a camp for adults with neuromuscular disease. Alex was the MDA Kansas Goodwill Ambassador when he was 10 years old. He made many lifelong friends, and his life was forever impacted by those he encountered.

He is survived by his parents, Patrick and Crystal O’Brien; sister, Sydney O’Brien; paternal grandparents, Wayne and Joann O’Brien, Overbrook, KS; aunts, Kimberly O’Brien, Lawrence, and Kim (Roger) Davis, Scranton , KS; and his loyal service dog, Romeo. He is also survived by many great aunts, uncles, and cousins. He was preceded in death by his aunts, Carmen Bell and Jamie Ullery, and his maternal grandparents, Burt and Sandy Bell.

The family will greet friends from 5:00-7:00 pm Friday, March 9, 2018 at Warren-McElwain Mortuary in Lawrence.

The family suggests honoring Alex by wearing their KU attire to both the visitation and his Celebration of Life.

Memorial contributions may be made in his honor to KSDS Assistance Dogs of Washington, KS or the FUSE Foundation of Dodge City, KS. These may be sent in care of Warren-McElwain Mortuary.