Two autistic brothers with ties to Utah drown off Hawaii coast
Aug 18, 2022, 6:00 PM | Updated: Dec 29, 2022, 11:28 am
Two autistic brothers, with ties to Utah, drowned last week off of the coast of Hawaii. Photo credit: Screenshot of GoFundMe page created by Raina Larkin Thorne.
SALT LAKE CITY — Two teenage autistic brothers with ties to Utah drowned in the ocean off of Hawaii last week, according to their aunt.
According to a news release from the Hawaii Police Department, the two boys Adam Larkin, 16, and his younger brother Gabriel, 14, along with their father and another relative were swept out to sea on Aug. 11. The news release says the two adults along with the 16-year-old were rescued.
However, Adam Larkin was later pronounced dead at an area hospital. Rescuers have been unable to locate Gabriel Larkin, and the search for him has been called off, according to the boys’ aunt Raina Thorne.
Parents of the two autistic brothers are from Utah
In an email to KSL NewsRadio, Thorne says both of the boys’ parents (Kyle and Amie) are originally from Utah. Kyle was raised in Hurricane, while Amie grew up in Salt Lake City.
Thorne says Kyle and Amie were married in Utah, but later moved to Hawaii where both boys were born. From there, the Larkins moved to Maryland, “where they had great schools for kids on the spectrum,” Thorne wrote in her email.
According to Thorne, the Larkins only recently moved back to Hawaii. They had only been there for one day before the tragedy occurred.
Thorne says one of her favorite memories of the boys was when they would come to visit them in southern Utah.
“Kyle took his boys around his stomping grounds of Pine Valley Mountain, Zion, Red Rocks,” she wrote. “We played games, talked, played at playgrounds, splash pads, farmer’s markets and enjoyed dinner at restaurants.”
She says the family will be returning to Utah over Labor Day weekend for a Celebration of Life.
Thorne has also set up a GoFundMe page to help with medical services and other bills. The remaining portion of the funds raised will be donated to The Organization of Autism Research.
KSL NewsRadio does not assure that the money deposited to the account directly benefits the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
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